Synagogue attacked by arsonist was being sold to Muslim organisation
An arsonist tried to torch a 100-year-old synagogue that is being sold to a Somali Muslim organisation, a court heard.
Moses Edwards, 45, was allegedly in contact with someone using an Iraqi phone number shortly before the blaze at the East London Central Synagogue on 5 May.
Edwards, of Wanstead, east London, is said to have carried out the attack using wine bottles containing an accelerant.
Police and firefighters attended the scene on Nelson Street shortly after 5.15am, but luckily only the gates and the lock of the historic building were damaged.
Edwards appeared at Westminster Magistrates’ Court charged with arson with intent to endanger life.
He gave no indication of plea and was remanded in custody ahead of a preliminary hearing at the Old Bailey on 5 June.
The Metropolitan Police earlier said: ‘Officers were quickly on scene with firefighters. Minor damage was caused to a set of gates and a lock at the front of the building.
‘No one was injured.’
The investigation is being led by Counter Terror Policing London.
A 52-year-old woman was also arrested as part of the investigation, which is being led by Counter Terrorism Policing London, on 10 May.
She has been released on bail until a date in August.
The East London Central Synagogue ceased operating in 2020 and was put up for auction in February and was advertised with an asking price of £2m.
The building is in the process of being sold to a local Somali Muslim organisation, the Ashaadibi community, who put down a £235,000 deposit in February.
The group is in the process of raising £3.5 million to purchase the property and renovate it, turning it into a mosque, education and community centre.
The Ashaabidi group said: ‘Ashaadibi Education and Cultural Centre has recently placed a deposit to purchase the disused Synagogue and restore it into a community hub, providing a space for worship, education, and provisions for women and youth, as well as a place for community development and fostering dialogue.’
‘We unequivocally condemn this cowardly act of arson and any form of violence or intimidation directed at places of worship and the communities they serve.
‘An attack on a house of worship is an attack on all of us.’A
