Man arrested following pepper spray attack at Novato mosque during 1st night of Ramadan
A man suspected in a pepper-spray attack at a mosque in Novato on the first night of Ramadan was arrested Tuesday morning, police said.
The attack happened Monday evening at the Islamic Center of North Marin Novato. In a press statement, Novato police said California Highway Patrol dispatchers transferred a 911 call about a member of the center who had been pepper sprayed by a person who may have had a gun in his bag.
The suspect ran away before officers arrived and a perimeter was set up on the 7000 block of Redwood Boulevard, police said. A CHP air unit helped police to search for the suspect who was not immediately located.
The victim was interviewed and treated at a hospital for minor injuries.
Police said the victim reported the suspect carried a bag and exposed what appeared to be a firearm inside.
The victim tried to restrain the suspect in a struggle over the bag; during the struggle, the person used pepper spray on the victim, grabbed the bag and fled, police said.
Police said the incident was captured on surveillance video. Investigators determined the person in the video was someone who had previously visited the Islamic Center, identified as 48-year-old San Rafael resident David Margoliash.
Detectives located Margoliash with the help of other Marin County law enforcement agencies and arrested him Tuesday morning. A search of his home in San Rafael turned up additional evidence implicating Margoliash in the crime; no firearm was located, according to police.
Margoliash was jailed on charges of unlawful possession of pepper spray and disrupting a religious ceremony. Novato police said there was insufficient evidence to support any hate crime-related charges, and it did not appear the center was explicitly targeted.
Police added that the department it was working closely with local religious leaders to partner on safety strategies and encouraged community members with any information to call the department at 415-897-4361 and reference Case #24-0799.