BUZZ
Conflicting reports raise questions about antisemitic motivations
A visiting Harvard University professor who allegedly shot a pellet gun near a synagogue during Yom Kippur agreed to voluntarily deport to Brazil this week, according to federal authorities.
On Wednesday, law Professor Carlos Portugal Gouvea was arrested and subsequently agreed to leave the U.S. rather than be forcibly deported, the Department of Homeland Security stated in a news release.
The department previously revoked his visa. In November, Gouvea agreed to a plea deal on the charge of illegal use of an air rifle, according to the news release.
Conflicting reports have raised questions about whether Gouvea’s motivations were antisemitic. The Brazilian lawyer initially told authorities he was “hunting rats.”
The department described Gouvea’s actions as “anti-Semitic” in its news release Wednesday.
“It is a privilege to work and study in the United States, not a right. There is no room in the United States for brazen, violent acts of anti-Semitism like this,” Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin stated in the release.
Previously, however, the Jewish leaders at the center of the incident stated that they had “no reason to believe this was an antisemitic event,” The College Fix previously reported.
Gouvea first was arrested Oct. 2 near Temple Beth Zion, a synagogue located in Brookline, Massachusetts, just a few miles from Harvard’s campus, The Fix reported.
He told police at the time that he was “hunting rats in the area” and was not aware that a synagogue was nearby
Soon after the incident, Harvard placed Gouvea on administrative leave, The Harvard Crimson reported at the time.
According to the synagogue leaders, the congregation was gathered for Yom Kippur when security guards heard a “loud noise” outside and went to investigate.
Meanwhile, the sanctuary went on temporary lockdown, they stated.
When the security guards found a man outside holding a gun, they “quickly” disarmed him and called the police; the gun was later determined to be a pellet gun, according to the synagogue’s statement.
“From what we were initially told by police, the individual was unaware that he lived next to, and was shooting his BB gun next to, a synagogue or that it was a religious holiday,” the Jewish leaders stated.
“We were told he said he was shooting rats; the window of a car parked on Beacon was shot. It was potentially dangerous to use a BB gun in such a populated spot, but it does not appear to have been fueled by antisemitism,” they stated.
Gouvea is a professor at the University of São Paulo Law School in Brazil, and CEO of the Global Law Institute, which focuses on “environmental and social justice,” according to his Harvard bio.
At Harvard this fall, he taught the courses “Sustainable Capitalism” and “Corruption and Inequality Seminar: Unraveling the Vicious Circle.”
MORE: Harvard professor on leave after allegedly shooting pellet gun near synagogue
