New York man accused of telling Jewish co-worker in cooler she was in 'gas chamber'

A New York man is accused of turning off the lights in a store's cooler and telling a Jewish co-worker standing inside that she was "in the gas chamber now," WNBC reported.

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William Sullivan, 21, of Saugerties, was arrested Friday and charged with aggravated harassment, WABC reported. Sullivan also has been fired from the Mother Earth's Storehouse in Kingston where the alleged incident occurred March 11, the Daily Freeman reported.

Sullivan was in the store cooler with Sarah Shabanowitz, 18, when he allegedly turned out the lights and made an anti-Semitic remark, WNBC reported.

Shabanowitz's mother, Jackie Winder Shabanowitz, wrote on Facebook that "Sarah went to management, they told her not speak about (it), removed her from produce, which she has been (in) for a year, and put her on the register."

Sarah Shabanowitz released her own statement, WABC reported, saying she was "horrified" by the incident and the store's response. She has since quit working at the store, the Daily Freeman reported.

"The way Mother Earth treated me was wrong. Not just Will, but management and the ownership. No one did anything to make me safe," Sarah Shabanowitz wrote. "No one took this seriously. Instead, management ordered me to keep quiet.

“I will not be quiet. No one should be subjected to anti-Semitism or racism or sexism at work."

Mother Earth posted a pair of apologies on its Facebook page, saying it was sorry for "the immense upset that has occurred."

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