The Police Department had opened a hate crime investigation on Monday after graffiti, including swastikas, was painted on four buses serving Orthodox Jewish schools in Brooklyn.
Investigators responded to a 911 call around 9:51 a.m. after the defaced buses were discovered near the intersection of Bedford Avenue and Williamsburg Street in Williamsburg, according to the Police Department.
The neighborhood is home to one of the largest communities of Hasidic Jews in the United States, who have opened numerous religious schools for children there.
Photos of the defaced yellow school buses, posted online by Williamsburg News, a hyperlocal outlet, show swastikas scrawled in black paint, as well as “USA First,” “Free Palestine” and a vulgar anti-Israel message.
The schools that were served by the buses did not immediately comment.
There were no arrests by early Monday afternoon. The police are searching for at least one man who was spotted on surveillance video wearing a black hooded sweatshirt, a blue baseball cap and black sneakers, officials said.
Hate crimes against Jews and Muslims have risen in the city since the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023, attack, which killed about 1,200 people, and the ensuing war in Gaza, which has killed at least 74,000 people, according to local health officials.
In the first nine months of 2026, more than half of the hate-motivated attacks in New York City have targeted Jewish residents, according to the police. Mayor Zohran Mamdani announced a plan in September to tackle the rise in antisemitism, including millions of dollars to fight hate crimes and promote Jewish cultural celebrations.
Letitia James, the New York State attorney general, urged anyone with information about the vandalism to contact the police.
“Antisemitism and hate have no home in New York.” Ms. James wrote on X.
Lincoln Restler, the City Council member whose district includes Williamsburg, called the graffiti obscene in a post on X. He said his office was working with the police and the local Jewish civilian patrols known as shomrim “to track down those responsible.”
“The decade-long rise in anti-Semitic incidents must be stopped,” he said.
Matthew Haag contributed reporting.
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