Mayor Karen Bass denounces ‘vile’ crime against Jewish family in Los Angeles

LOS ANGELES — Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said Wednesday that police would step up patrols after a man was arrested on suspicion of breaking into a Jewish family’s home and threatening them.

"The vile act of hate that took place this morning has no place in our City,” Bass said in a strongly worded condemnation. “In the wake of the terror and violence inflicted over the previous weeks, this is one of the worst fears of Jewish families across our country — hatred spilling across the threshold, destroying the sense of safety and sanctuary in a home.”

A woman called 911 before dawn to report a home invasion, saying she was hiding with her four children as a stranger threatened to kill them, FOX 11 reported. The news station showed footage of the suspect in custody, wearing only his underwear, repeatedly shouting “Free Palestine!”

“We were very scared because of the situation in Israel now, and we are Israeli,” the woman's husband, who said he confronted the intruder, told KCAL News.

No one was physically hurt in the incident, Los Angeles police said. The LAPD said on Wednesday afternoon it did not have any additional information to report on the suspect.

Bass called on officials “to take action to ensure the person responsible for this heinous act is held fully accountable,” in her statement.

“We remain steadfast in support of the Jewish people — the people of Los Angeles will not cower to hate,” she said. “We will respond to it.”

The ongoing war between Israel and Hamas has left Jewish and Muslim communities increasingly distraught and on edge in the United States. Earlier this month, a Palestinian American boy in Illinois was stabbed to death by his landlord, who targeted him because he was Muslim, officials said.