The bag also was marked with a swastika, but did not have any pictures or Furrow's quote attached. Similar bags without hate messages were also dumped at an elementary school, a shopping center and two libraries. Rabbi William Marder of Beth El in Norwalk noted that the shootings at the Los Angeles-area JCC prompted him and several people from the temple to meet with the Norwalk police and mayor. They discussed increasing security at the synagogue partly to protect the children in the religious school. Then came the discovery of the bag of medical waste with the swastikas.
Some congregants live close to the temple.
Members of Beth El in Stamford also felt shock and outrage, but Rabbi Joshua Hammerman and Mark Lapine, the new president, have made a concerted effort to allay people's fears. Police were scheduled to address the congregation on Thursday to discuss how to handle the situation, he said. Since the shootings at the Los Angeles-area JCC, the Stamford Police Department has increased security at various religious institutions. Dean Esserman, chief of police, said he personally checked the Stamford JCC, even though he expected a police cruiser to do its own check. Because of similarities, the police in both towns believe the incidents are linked and have set up a task force with the FBI and the U.S. Attorney's Office to investigate.