NY Gov. Hochul bolsters FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force staffing over 'rise in hate crimes,' harassment

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul announced Monday that her state is increasing its staffing to the FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force in response to a "rise in hate crimes and incidents of harassment" since the onset of the Israel-Hamas war. 

The additional $2.5 million being directed to the New York State Police will allow it to "deploy ten additional investigators in New York City, Albany, Buffalo and Rochester, ensuring the State Police has a presence in all JTTF investigative groups and areas," Hochul’s office said in a statement. 

"I immediately deployed the New York State Police on October 7 to protect at-risk communities and we have continued our laser focus on public safety since then," the statement quoted Hochul as saying. "Surging resources to the Joint Terrorism Task Force is a critical step to ensure New Yorkers are protected from domestic and international threats." 

Hochul’s office says the deployment will allow State Police to work as a "force-multiplier for the JTTF, ensuring that all cases with New York State ties are thoroughly examined and investigated.

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"It will also strengthen ties already existing between the JTTF and the New York State Intelligence Center Counter-Terrorism Center, allowing for greater involvement in investigations into Racially Motivated Violent Extremists, Domestic Violent Extremist groups, Anti-Government/Anti-Authority Violent Extremists, as well as into conspiracy theories & disinformation/misinformation," it added. 

Statistics from the New York City Police Department’s Hate Crime Task Force show that bias incidents under investigation rose by 124% since October, including a 214% growth in anti-Jewish incidents, according to Hochul’s office. 

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"Overall, hate crime investigations year to date continued their downward trend with a decrease of 9%," the office also said. 

In October, an Ivy League student who allegedly made threats of a mass shooting and antisemitic violence at Cornell University was criminally charged following a JTTF investigation. 

Cornell University administrators had dispatched campus police to a Jewish center after threatening statements appeared on a discussion board. 

Fox News' Stepheny Price contributed to this report.