Police officials asked residents Sunday for doorbell video that may have captured someone putting packets that contained corn and antisemitic flyers onto residents’ front lawns overnight.
Police said they’ve increased patrols following the distribution of the material, which officials said likely happened before 6 a.m. Sunday.
“On May 16 … Berkley (Department of Public Safety) was notified that pamphlets containing Anti-Semitic content were distributed in the area of Coolidge to Woodward, and 11 Mile to 12 Mile,” Berkley police officials said in a Sunday Facebook post.
About 100 of the packets were found on Henley, Oxford, Cass and Wiltshire streets, police said.
“We are asking anyone with home security who wishes to voluntarily submit any video for review to (submit it to an online evidence portal),” police said. “We are increasing our patrols in the area.”
The Jewish Federation of Detroit said it’s “outraged” by the incident, which the organization called “yet another targeted act meant to propagate hate and intimidate Jewish residents.
“This is a clear hate crime against members of our community intended to make us feel unwelcome in our neighborhoods and homes,” the federation said in a statement. “We applaud law enforcement for their prompt action.”
The Anti Defamation League’s Michigan chapter has offered to submit video footage for residents who are reluctant to contact police directly.
The distribution of the flyers marks the second antisemitic incident in Oakland County recently. On April 28, Beverly Elementary School in Birmingham had its Multicultural Night marred by offensive material, Birmingham Public Schools Superintendent Embekka Roberson said in a letter to parents.
“During the event, a table in one room included stickers that were inappropriate and offensive, including a sticker with an image of a gun and a sticker that stated “(expletive) Zionism,” the letter said. “These materials were not on display during the principal’s walkthrough prior to the event, and they do not reflect our district’s values.”
According to an audit released this month by the Anti-Defamation League, “The year 2025 was the third-highest year on record for antisemitic incidents since the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) began tracking them in 1979.”
The audit found that antisemitic incidents decreased in 2025 compared to 2024, “but levels remained much higher than in years prior to 2023,” the report said.
ghunter@detroitnews.com
(313) 222-2134
@GeorgeHunter_DN
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Berkley police ask for doorbell videos after antisemitic flyers left on lawns
Reporting by George Hunter, The Detroit News / The Detroit News
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