Hate crime charges filed against 2 suspects, third suspect sought: USF Police

TAMPA, Fla. — University of South Florida Police said it has filed charges against two suspects accused of disrupting morning prayer on the university campus.

USF Police said charges have been filed against Christopher Svochak, 40, of Waco, TX, and Richard Penskoski, 49, of Canyon, OK, for Disorderly conduct and disrupting school or lawful assembly. Both men have known local addresses in Tampa and have no affiliation with USF, USF police said.

Police continue to look for the third suspect.

Watch full wrap up of press conference with Jada Williams

Muslim students at the University of South Florida are calling for stronger protection and a dedicated safe space on campus after three men disrupted their morning prayer service Tuesday, hurling insults and taunting them with bacon in an incident that was live-streamed on YouTube.

Abu Tahir, the prayer leader who was conducting the dawn prayer service, said the harassment lasted 13 minutes as the men placed a box mocking the holy Kaaba in front of the praying students, screamed insults about their Prophet Muhammad and accused them of "praying to the devil."

"They walked close to our heads while we entered the bowing position, so close that we genuinely had a fear that they weren't going to stomp on our heads," Tahir said during a press conference Thursday. "The entire time, the question was running in our head, 'Is this individual armed? Does this individual want to hurt us?'"

The 11 Muslim students were conducting their traditional Fajr and breakfast event in a corner of a campus parking lot around 6:30 a.m. when the three men stormed their peaceful worship service. The men waited until the prayer ended before taunting the students with bacon, violating Islamic dietary restrictions.

A Peaceful Prayer

Tampa Bay 28 was invited to join as students prayed at the USF Ampitheater Friday afternoon. More than 100 muslims prayed openly, as USF police officers stood nearby. Other students watched, wanting to show solidarity.

Students describe traumatic experience

Tahir, who has been leading prayers for the Muslim Student Association for years, described the terror he felt during what should have been a peaceful religious observance.

"For years now, the USF MSA has had a tradition of hosting a Fajr and breakfast event where we do the morning prayer, and then afterwards we have a short Quran study, and then we all join each other for breakfast," Tahir said. "We've done it for years with no issue. It's always been a peaceful event."

The morning started like any other, with 11 students gathering for dawn prayer, followed by Quran study and breakfast. Tahir was leading the prayer when he heard footsteps around the group.

"I had just assumed it was another student joining the congregation, but then I started to see movement in front of me, and very quickly, I realized the reality of the situation," he said. "Three grown men had stormed us in our peaceful act of worship in the corner of a massive parking lot on USF campus."

The men placed a box in front of the praying students that clearly mocked the holy Kaaba, the most sacred place on earth for Muslims worldwide. During the prayer, when Muslims cannot move or turn around until the service concludes, the harassers began their assault.

"They began to yell at us. They screamed insults at us, personal insults. They insulted our Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him. They accused us of praying to the devil while we're in the middle of our worship," Tahir said. "They're screaming in our faces that Jesus is Lord. They pushed cameras inches from our faces, which you can see from the live streams and the recordings that have gone out."

The students faced a terrifying dilemma during their prayer. Islamic prayer requires complete focus and stillness until completion, but the harassment escalated around them.

"We had a thought in our head, do we break the prayer? Do we end the prayer to address whatever is going on, to ensure that we all leave safe, that we all go home safe?" Tahir said. "But we had finished the prayer regardless."

After the prayer ended, the harassment intensified. The men taunted the students with bacon, making a mockery of Islamic dietary restrictions and claiming that certain scholars had made it permissible.

"These are 50-year-old grown men, more than double our age. They have a foot on me. We had no idea whether we were going to leave there safely," Tahir said. "This harassment went on continuously for 13 minutes."

Even after the men departed, the students remained fearful they would return with worse intentions or weapons.

University response criticized as inadequate

Malak al Bustami, president of the Muslim Student Association at USF, said the incident left students feeling abandoned by university leadership during one of the most terrifying moments of their lives.

"There was no security, no staff, no one to step in. We were completely alone," al Bustami said. "The fact that they live-streamed the assault made it even worse. They wanted an audience while humiliating us. Knowing that hundreds of strangers were watching was deeply violating."

al Bustami criticized the university's response as insufficient and tone-deaf to the severity of the incident.

"We are disappointed when we needed protection, we felt invisible when we needed leadership, we were met with silence," she said. "To the USF administration, stand with us. Show us that we matter. It is your obligation to protect all students equally and ensure our safety on this campus."

The students have posted a letter on their Instagram demanding a face-to-face meeting with the USF president and requesting a dedicated safe space for worship on campus. They criticized the university's response as inadequate, noting that USF only issued a vague Instagram story that disappeared after 24 hours without mentioning Islam, Muslims or Islamophobia.

"The statement that USF issued was just an Instagram story, which only stays on there for 24 hours. It's not a permanent statement," said a community leader at the press conference. "They didn't even say the word Islam or Muslims. It didn't mention Islamophobia, which is a real thing, just like antisemitism."

The community leader noted that while USF has been strong in opposing antisemitism, the university should treat Islamophobia and bigotry against Muslim students with the same seriousness.

We reached out to USF. They told us they are working with the students in a statement.

Community rallies in support

Community leaders, elected officials, and clergy from multiple faiths gathered Thursday to condemn the harassment and show solidarity with the Muslim students. The diverse coalition included Christian pastors, Jewish leaders, county commissioners, and law enforcement officials.

"An attack on any of our students is an attack on all of our students," said Ahmed Bedier. "An attack on any one worshiping is an attack on everybody worshiping, and an attack on any house of worship is an attack on all houses of worship. We have no place for it in our community, and it's not going to happen on our watch."

Hillsborough County Commissioner Harry Cohen, speaking as both an elected official and a Jewish American, called the incident "appalling" and said the menacing behavior was "simply intolerable in a decent and law-abiding society."

"What is particularly distinguishing about this incident is that we have all seen the video and the audio footage," Cohen said. "No one in America should be assaulted while exercising their constitutionally protected rights."

Commissioner Gwen Myers emphasized the county's commitment to protecting all residents regardless of faith.

"We are one Hillsborough. One Hillsborough means that we support our neighbors, we support the Muslim community," Myers said. "Hillsborough County has excellent, most valuable citizens and the Muslim community are our citizens. We cannot allow this to happen, and it will not happen again."

Christian leaders condemn harassment

Several Christian pastors spoke forcefully against the harassment, emphasizing that the perpetrators' actions contradicted Christian teachings.

Reverend Tom Scott said he stands "in unity and solidarity with the Muslim students and with the Muslim community against and oppose any violence, any intimidation, any threats to any citizen, any student attending USF."

"I am a Christian, and nowhere where I read in my Bible where Jesus threatened or intimidated persons who were practicing their faith or their belief," Scott said.

Pastor Elvis Piggott, who previously coached Muslim students at a local Islamic school, called the behavior "absolutely unacceptable."

"When one hurts, we all should hurt," Piggott said. "Standing together does not necessarily mean that you have to believe in the same thing, but you should have common decency to treat everyone with respect."

The Reverend Dr. Russell Meyer, executive director of the Florida Council of Churches representing nearly a million Floridians across the state, delivered perhaps the strongest condemnation of the harassment.

"The recent verbal assault at morning prayer by three so-called Christians is unacceptable and a violation of the constitutional rights of the students," Meyer said. "The State Attorney's office must identify and prosecute the perpetrators of this assault to the full extent of the law."

Meyer praised the students' courage in maintaining their peaceful prayer despite the verbal assault, calling them "some of the most courageous people I've seen in a long time."

"What I saw was courage of holding space for the well-being of God in our lives as an example for all of us, whether we're believers or not, or whatever it is we believe, of how to stay strong together in the face of the assaults of this world," Meyer said.

He quoted Jesus's teachings from the Sermon on the Mount, emphasizing the golden rule of treating others with respect and dignity.

"Anyone claiming to be Christian who thinks it's their duty to interrupt somebody's prayer service should hear again how Jesus concludes the Sermon on the Mount," Meyer said, before quoting scripture about those who "behave lawlessly."

Law enforcement pledges protection

Deputy Chief Joe Maurer of the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office, representing Sheriff Chad Chronister, emphasized law enforcement's commitment to protecting religious gatherings.

"Sheriff Chronister's number one priority is to keep this community safe, particularly groups that gather to pray," Maurer said. "Prayer is a time for peace, a time of reflection. Sheriff Chad Chronister and the rest of Team HCSO stand behind everybody that worships any choice of God that they choose to."

Maurer assured the community that law enforcement would provide security for religious gatherings when needed.

"If you want to gather and you want to pray within Hillsborough County, the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office will make it our duty and our mission to keep you safe while you do so," he said.

When asked about providing security for future prayer services, Maurer confirmed that if USF police requested assistance, the sheriff's office would coordinate protection for students.

"Everyone has a right to pray to whichever God they choose to, and it is our priority to make sure that they're safe doing so in a time of peace," he said.

We have also seen online talk suggesting the men in the video were within their First Amendment rights.

While HCSO is not the agency investigating the incident, Tampa Bay 28 reporter Jada Williams did ask them about if this qualifies as a First Amendment right.

"You can say whatever you want, but if you're, if you're within inches of somebody in a prone position when they're in their prayer position, that's not, that's that's not a safe thing and a safe environment. They crossed the line. They crossed the line."

Investigation ongoing, perpetrators identified

USF police are currently investigating the incident.

"The guys that were there, it's not hard to find. They have their YouTube channel and their names are up there," said Bedier. "It's not a mystery who did this. They're proudly boasting."

The harassment appears to be part of a coordinated effort, as these same individuals have conducted similar disruptions at other locations across state lines.

"These guys have done this in other places. Perhaps the FBI should also be involved in this, because they're going across state lines and repeating this in different places," he said.

The incident occurred on the same day as similar harassment in Dearborn, Michigan, home to the largest Muslim community in America, raising questions about whether these incidents are coordinated.

Part of rising anti-Muslim sentiment

Community leaders emphasized that this incident reflects a broader pattern of rising anti-Muslim incidents across the nation, driven by groups seeking to divide communities along religious and racial lines.

"This is consistent with a rise of anti-Muslim incidents that are happening, not just here in Tampa, but across the nation," said Bedier. "There are certain groups that have agendas to stoke division and fear and to divide our nation along religious or racial lines."

Ahmed Bedier warned against falling for social media campaigns designed to create the false impression of widespread religious conflict.

"They try to go on social media to try to make it look like there's a rising tide, that Christians are rising up against Muslims, and that Muslims are somehow a threat. These are all fabrications. They're lies, and they are designed to sow those divisions between our society," he said.

Students vow to continue practicing faith

Despite the trauma of the incident, the Muslim students emphasized they will not be intimidated or silenced by the harassment.

"We do belong here, and we will not let fear define us," al Bustami said. "We will not be silenced. We will not be intimidated. We will not let hate dictate how we live, pray or gather."

Tahir, who was born and raised in Tampa, expressed concern about the future his children might face if such incidents continue.

"I am genuinely afraid. I was born and raised in Tampa, Florida. I might look a little different, but I've had a very great childhood right here in Tampa, Florida," he said. "I am genuinely terrified for the America that my children might have to grow up in if this doesn't stop today, and it doesn't stop now."

Video circulating online shows three men harassing Muslim students at the University of South Florida during their morning prayer on Tuesday.

Tampa Bay 28 reporter Jada Williams talked to some of the students who were there. The students told Jada the men were shouting profanities, stomping around them and making racist remarks while they prayed on campus.