Brooklyn Jewish Vigilante Groups To Arm It's Members

BROOKLYN, NY - Are rogue paramilitary vigilantes roaming the streets of Brooklyn in Jewish neighborhoods? That's what the Jewish Defense Organization claims: that they're currently training in camps across the U.S. to teach other jews to shoot guns, learn hand to hand combat and generally pursue and rough up Neo-Nazis they say have Brooklyn headquarters and are responsible for a rash of swastika defacings of synagogues and homes.

Assemblyman Dov Hikind, who has a large Jewish constituency lambasted the methods. "The police are doing everything they can to find those who've done it, and by the way they think it is different individuals, not one group. There is no need for people to come in and train people with guns like it's 1938 Germany." His strong words continued, "We don't need you. Go somewhere else. Please don't impose yourself on us."

We tracked the self proclaimed leader of the JDO teaching at one of their paramilitary camps in Illinois, and interviewed him on the phone. Leader Jeff Klein boasted of how widespread their program has become. "Around the country 8,000 different jewish men and women have been trained. In kick boxing, gun training, and it's legal and free, the whole program."

Klein boasted of getting what he calls "security teams" pistol carry permits all over New York, and getting handguns and rifles into synagogues with Rabbi's blessings to protect congregants. He explained getting around New York City's tough pistol permitting laws, "If a synagogue gives you permission then you can bring it in legally, and store it there. Then they are armed and ready."

Klein even confessed his security teams roughed up grave defacing vandals after 400 final resting spots were vandalized a year and a half ago at Washington Cemetery along Ocean Parkway in Brooklyn. "They stopped an attack at a jewish cemetery recently. They stopped an actual attack and chased them out. the anti-semites are not going to make hay in that place. I'll be blunt. They knocked them around, chased them out of cemetery and that the owners of that cemetery gave us permission to patrol, and after that, thank god the attacks stopped after that." Klein insists the rough and tumble jewish patrols used baseball bats and chains to beat the Neo-Nazis who were caught in the act of defacing graves.

But those claims are pure fabrication according to the cemetery manager who insists he never heard of JDO, nor asked the group to patrol. Nor was any vandalism found in the cemetery, nor were any complaints filed with the NYPD.

Now the JDO says they've been on a manhunt for swastika painters who defaced the Merkaz Yisroel in Marine Park in June.

And the idea of hundreds of armed-to-the teeth and trigger-happy paramilitary dudes itching to take out Neo Nazis roaming residential neighborhoods, is not sitting well with locals.

Lisa, a Marine Park mom laid it out frankly, "It's dangerous. I have 2 children at home. It's not a good idea."

That sentiment was echoed by a dad walking his daughter to the park in front of the synagogue. Hector Sanchez, a father of four said, "No that's wrong. We're not in that age. If I see them do that I would talk to them and ask them why they're doing it. But I wouldn't shoot them because then I'm just as bad as they are."

The NYPD says they know nothing of the group that claims to have hundreds of members in New York that's been roughing up Neo Nazis on the streets.

(PIX11)