Secret tunnel in NYC synagogue leads to brawl

The police said the tunnel was built in secret. Pic/AP

A historic Brooklyn synagogue that serves as the center of an influential Hasidic Jewish movement was trashed during a community dispute that began with the discovery of a secret underground tunnel and ended in brawl between worshippers and police.

The conflict erupted in the global headquarters of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement in Crown Heights, a deeply revered Jewish site that each year receives thousands of visitors, including international students and religious leaders.

Officials and locals said young men in the community recently built the passage to the sanctuary in secret. When the group's leaders tried to seal it off, they staged a protest that turned violent as police moved in to make arrests.

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