A man from New Jersey has been sentenced to six months in jail following his unlawful entry and vandalism of a Rutgers University Islamic center on Eid-al-Fitr, a significant Muslim holiday. Jacob Beacher, residing in North Plainfield, is also required to serve a year under supervised release post-incarceration as outlined in the ruling handed down on Tuesday. He admitted guilt in October to the federal charge of committing a hate crime by damaging religious property.
Initially facing charges in April 2024, Beacher was accused of both obstructing religious practice intentionally or attempting to do so and providing false statements to federal officials. These charges were linked to his intrusion at the Center for Islamic Life located at Rutgers University in New Brunswick.
Prosecutors highlighted that Beacher caused damage to various items at the center, including numerous religious artifacts and objects bearing holy verses from the Quran, the sacred book of Islam. Authorities further noted that he took a Palestinian flag and a charity box from the premises.
Officials clarified that Beacher does not have any ties with Rutgers University. At the time of the break-in, which occurred around 2:40 a.m., the center was unoccupied, as per prosecutors’ reports. The total damages were approximately valued at $40,000.
When interviewed by the FBI two days following the incident, Beacher acknowledged he was the individual seen near the center in surveillance footage but refuted claims of breaking in. The incident occurred shortly after the state attorney general’s office had documented a rise in bias-related incidents in New Jersey.