Man appears in bond court after being accused of antisemitic attack in Dania Beach

DANIA BEACH, Fla. – A man accused of committing a violent antisemitic attack in Dania Beach earlier this month appeared in bond court Wednesday morning.

Broward Sheriff’s Office deputies said they arrested Tevin Grant, 28, Tuesday near the 1300 block of Stirling Road after investigators received information regarding his whereabouts.

According to authorities, on the evening of Feb. 7, the victim was riding his bicycle and talking on the phone in Hebrew when a man walking by hurled an antisemitic slur at him before punching him in the face.

The punch caused the victim to fall from his bike.

“He’s very scared now,” the victim’s father, Ronen Carney, said following the suspect’s arrest. “You know, he got really traumatized. He’s young, 19 years old, and it’s scary, you know, what’s going on now with violence everywhere.”

A nearby business owner told Local 10 News that the suspect called the victim a “f-ing Jew.”

A judge set Grant’s bond at $10,000.

“If the prosecutors determine enough evidence exists to apply the hate crime enhancement it would enhance aggravated battery from a second-degree felony to a first-degree felony,” legal analyst David Weinstein said. “That means the defendant is looking at a punishment of up to 30 years.”

The Broward State Attorney’s Office said it will review the case and make a determination on whether a hate crime enhancement will be added to the initial charge.

The Anti-Defamation League of Florida released the following statement Wednesday to Local 10 News in regard to the incident:

“ADL Florida is increasingly concerned about the exponential rise in antisemitic and extremist activity – both across the state and nationally. ADL’s 2021 Audit of Antisemitic Incidents found an alarming 50 percent increase in antisemitic incidents in Florida over the year prior, jumping from 127 recorded incidents in 2020 to 190 recorded incidents in 2021. Extremist activity, often antisemitic, is also on the rise. A recent report, ‘Hate in the Sunshine State,’ found a 71 percent increase in extremist-related activity in Florida from 2020-2021, largely driven by the rampant distribution of white supremacist propaganda. ADL Florida calls upon elected and community leaders to swiftly and decisively condemn antisemitic and extremist activity.”

Prosecutors told Local 10 News Thursday that they are still “reviewing all the facts of the case in order to make a formal charging decision in regard to the hate crime enhancement.”