Synagogue Bombing Suspect Appeared to Be ‘Innocent Old Soul’
Ron Hirsch appeared to be an “innocent old soul,” said one man who saw him arrested by Cleveland Heights Police and the FBI.
The synagogue bombing suspect was arrested around 6 p.m. at the Agudath Israel, Kollel Torah L.I.F.E. building at 1861 South Taylor Rd. in Cleveland Heights, said Jerry Elliot, a local resident who witnessed the arrest.
Elliot thought Hirsch was just studying at the study center, as everyone else was, and the only indication that he was not a regular member was the fact he was wearing “beach clothes.” Most men who attend the kollel, which is an Orthodox Jewish study center for all ages, wear a suit.
Hirsch was arrested outside in the back of the building, Elliot said, and did not put up a fight. Elliot said it was “nothing exciting” and did not believe that Hirsch had “evil intentions” for the building in particular.
Apparently Hirsch arrived Sunday, Elliot said, and the Jewish community put him up at a hotel in Beachwood. Normally, those passing through stay at a house on Bendemeer Road in Cleveland Heights, but it must have been full, Elliot said. He came back to the kollel Monday.
“When somebody’s coming through town, and they need a place to stay just for a night or two … the community will put them up,” Elliot said.
Hirsch is being held at the Cleveland Heights Police Department, FBI spokesman Scott Wilson said.
“He’s still in custody over at the Cleveland Heights Police Department, and investigators from California have come in to further their investigation,” Wilson said.
The Cleveland Heights Police Department would not comment.
Authorities had been pursuing Hirsch since Friday, when authorities announced he had been linked to Thursday’s explosion. No one was injured in the incident, and the motive behind it is still unclear.
“The individual in custody was arrested following a call to law enforcement by a concerned citizen who had come into contact with [the] man believed to be Hirsch,” FBI spokeswoman Laura Eimiller told Patch.
Hirsch, 60, bought a Greyhound bus ticket under the name J. Fisher, one of his known aliases, according to authorities. The bus left Los Angeles on Thursday and was scheduled to arrive in New York on Sunday, making 10 stops along the way.
On Monday, the FBI released surveillance video showing Hirsch at a Greyhound station in Denver on Friday at 8:19 p.m. It is still unclear how he traveled from Colorado to Ohio.
Chabad House mommy
We want to be warm and inviting to everyone who comes to our chabad houses, but we also need to be so careful. You never know if someone has a mental illness and can be potentially dangerous. They might appear to be perfectly fine. What can you do?
you are not helpless
what can you do?
For one thing, u try and use some common sense and stop acting like bleeding hearts.Be aware and cautious and if something is off, don’t put your family in harms way as many in Chabad do. Unfortunately this asttitude of wanting to do good sometimes backfires and the whackos who get in have hurt shluchim and others.There is no obligation to cater to the mentally ill who sometimes respond to voices etc. The attitude “what can you do” just shows you are thinking like a “helpless” one and that is wrong right there!
Chabad House mommy
I am not the shlucha of the chabad house I attend. I have expressed my concerns to the shliach and he has usually told me that the person I was concerned about was helpless. Even when his wife complained about a certain person, he still wouldn’t do anything about him. His wife wouldn’t come to the chabad house when this particular guy was there and wouldn’t let her kids go, either. There have been other instances where a man was allowed to take up residence even though more than a few people complained that he was hitting on young girls. Supposedly the rabbi has spoken to him about this, but the guy is still there. So, when I say, “what can I do”? I’m talking mostly about what I can do about the shliach.