Baltimore County man pleads guilty to vandalizing Jewish cemetery with antisemitic symbols

A Baltimore County man pleaded guilty to federal charges after vandalizing a Jewish cemetery in Dundalk in 2023, federal prosecutors said.

George Horn, 36, of Dundalk, admitted to spray-painting swastikas and other symbols on multiple headstones at Ohr Knesseth Israel Anshe Sfard Cemetery in July 2023.

According to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Maryland, Horn said he targeted the cemetery "because it is a Jewish cemetery."

Horn was arrested and charged with religious vandalism.

According to his guilty plea, Horn used black spray paint to deface 12 gravestones. Court records also documented his antisemitic animus toward Jewish people.

Investigators found antisemitic messages and other items in Horn's car and storage unit, including a journal containing references to Nazism and white supremacy. Authorities also found a nine-second video on his phone showing Horn spray-painting two gravestones, along with a translated copy of Adolf Hitler's autobiographical manifesto, Mein Kampf.

Federal officials said the cemetery, located in Dundalk, was established in the late 19th century.

Horn is scheduled to be sentenced on Thursday, Jan. 14, 2027. He faces a maximum sentence of three years in prison for damaging religious property.