The Swampscott Police Department announced the arrest of a Dracut resident in connection with the destruction of property at Congregation Shirat Hayam.
The police responded to a “report of suspicious activity involving a motor vehicle with damage to the property” at Congregation Shirat Hayam of the North Shore on Tuesday, June 30 around 7:31 a.m. Following an investigation, Swampscott detectives identified the vehicle and its operator as Nick Ashtar-Zadeh of Dracut.
“As a result, an arrest warrant was issued for the suspect,” the report reads. “Last night, Saugus Police located Mr. Ashtar-Zadeh and placed him under arrest on the Swampscott warrant.”
Rabbi Michael Ragozin told the Swampscott Tides that “this hateful act is painful, saddening, and infuriating.”
We applaud and take comfort in the Swampscott Police Department’s rapid response and ongoing investigation,” Ragozin said. “Whoever damaged our sacred space sought only to intimidate and destroy. Our response will be just the opposite. We will answer darkness with light by deepening our commitment to Jewish practices, strengthening the bonds within our congregation, and continuing, in partnership with the broader Swampscott community, to build a society rooted in kindness, dignity, and justice.”
During his arraignment in Lynn District Court, Ashtar-Zadeh was charged with:
- Malicious destruction of property, + $1,200
- Destruction or threats to destroy a place of worship, + $5,000
- Property damage to intimidate
- Civil rights violation
“Mr. Ashtar-Zadeh is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law,” the Swampscott press release reads.
Police Chief Ruben Quesada received a message from the Anti-Defamation League New England noting “the swift and thorough response of the Swampscott Police Department.”
“Acts like this are deeply painful and unsettling to the Jewish community, and we truly appreciate your efforts to investigate and arrest the alleged perpetrator,” the letter from Regional Director Samantha Jospeh reads. “Your department’s quick actions send an unmistakable message that hate has no place in Swampscott and that acts of intimidation against any religious community will be met with accountability.”
Quesada posted the letter to the police department’s Facebook page, noting that he is “so proud of the men and women of the Swampscott Police Department.”
“Everyday, they work tirelessly to protect our community that is defined by a simple but powerful standard: dignity and respect for all,” Quesada posted. “Hate has no home in Swampscott. We stand firmly against all forms of intolerance. Anyone who commits acts of hate will be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law. We are all stronger together.”
Last year, Ashtar-Zadeh was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Julia Kobick to six months in prison, followed by two years of supervised release, for his role in a scheme to fraudulently obtain products from an online cosmetics company and resell them on Amazon and eBay.
He was originally charged in September 2024 along with his brother, Nika Ashtar-Zadeh, and pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud in October 2024.
From 2019 to 2021, the brothers operated Amazon and eBay storefronts that sold a variety of products, including merchandise from a Texas-based cosmetics company. The Ashtar-Zadehs offered the company’s products on the platforms to buyers for one-time payments, which were typically equal to or below the company’s listing prices.
The two then enrolled the Amazon and eBay buyers in the company’s 30-day trial program for the same products, entering buyers’ information on the company’s website without the customers’ knowledge or consent. The company in turn shipped its products to the buyers.
“The Ashtar-Zadehs presented the company with forms of payment that fulfilled initial charges of $19.95 but were declined when the company attempted to charge later installments, after buyers had kept the products past 30 days,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Massachusetts wrote in a press release. “The brothers sold the company’s products in this manner to hundreds of buyers on Amazon and eBay, each time pocketing the difference between what the buyers paid them and the initial $19.95 upfront payment to the company. As a result of the conduct, the Ashtar-Zadehs cost the company hundreds of thousands of dollars.”
He was also ordered to pay $181,806 in restitution and forfeit $111,156.
Updated July 8, 2026 at 5:45 p.m. with a quote from Rabbi Ragozin
Updated July 10, 2026 at 7 a.m. with a quote from the police chief
