Flagler Beach businesses vandalized with antisemitic messages

Three Flagler Beach buildings were tagged with antisemitic messages over the weekend: the Salty Turtle Gift Shop, the former Bank of America building across from the pier and the Dollar General.

By Sierra Williams
| 3:51 p.m. November 20, 2023

Anti-semitic slurs were spray painted onto the former Bank of America building in Flagler Beach, the Salty Turtle Gift Shop and the Dollar General on S.R. 100. Photo courtesy of Tomer Oshri

Palm Coast Observer
News

Three Flagler Beach businesses were spray-painted with antisemitic messages over the weekend.

The Salty Turtle Gift Shop, the former Bank of America building across from the pier and the Dollar General on State Road 100 were vandalized between Saturday, Nov. 18, and Sunday, Nov. 19, with the variations of the phrase "Jew child killers." Flagler Beach Police Chief Matthew Doughney said police are looking for "a heavyset, possibly white male, wearing a black hoodie."

"If somebody knows who it is, hopefully they'll turn them in so that they can be held accountable for what they're doing, because it's just not right," Doughney said.

Doughney said the "hate-tags" are related to the latest Israel-Hamas war.

"Vandalism is not something that happens frequently here," Doughney said. "But for it to be hate-tags is even worse."

Tomer Oshri, who owns the Salty Turtle Gift Shop on State Road 100, said his landlord notified him of the vandalism Monday morning.

Oshri, who flies an Israeli flag outside his shop and has family in Israel, said this is the second time he has experienced antisemitism in Flagler Beach.

Last year, he said, a man stood outside the Salty Turtle and yelled "slaughter all the Jews" in Arabic.

Oshri said the police at the time said they could not do much because of free speech. He said the vandalism of his business over the weekend is "a direct impact from what's going on in Israel right now."

"Americans need to wake up," Oshri said. "They will not scare us, and the flag is going to be still flying. I'm not going to remove the flag."

author

Sierra Williams

Sierra Williams is a staff writer for the Palm Coast Observer covering a variety of topics, including government and crime. She graduated from the University of Central Florida in 2021 with her bachelor's degree in print/digital journalism and a minor in political science. Sierra moved to Palm Coast in September 2022 and is a Florida native from Brevard County.