"Those items were not necessarily valuable but hold great sentimental and religious value to us and the students at Chabad house," wrote Rabbi Chalom Boudjnah, head of SDSU's Chabad House in a Facebook post.
In April, SDSU assembled an Antisemitism Task Force. The group will take charge of making sure the investigation proceeds properly, NBC San Diego reported on Saturday.
Boudjnah added that video footage helped them identify the perpetrators within a few hours of the incident, adding that "One of them actually posted pictures of themselves bragging about stealing!"
Last week @SDSU students broke into the campus Chabad Jewish center & stole several items.The Rabbi did not press charges if the students agreed to apologize.A week later the same students are now mocking the rabbi & stolen items on social media. Video of robbery in thread. pic.twitter.com/TmByPbWqVI
— StopAntisemitism.org (@StopAntisemites) May 5, 2021
The group returned the stolen photos on Thursday, but left Boudjnah with the question of how to proceed next. He wrote that he met with the perpetrators, and insisted that instead of getting expelled, they write a letter of apology and commit to 10 hours of community service.
One of them responded by reposting a picture of himself during the theft incident, prompting Boudjnah to take appropriate legal action against them.
— StopAntisemitism.org (@StopAntisemites) May 6, 2021
"What occurred is both offensive and unacceptable," SDSU stated, "We expect better, and members of our Jewish community deserve better."
Boudjnah added that he and his wife, Mairav, have been touched by the outpouring of support that they've received since the incident occurred, from students to SDSU AEPI to the SDSU Hillel: "Your words and support warms our heart and we are so thankful to have you all in our lives!"