For much of East County San Diego, seeing a Nazi flag flying across town draped over an SUV has become more common. On January 12th, the same car was spotted in a La Mesa parking lot.

The man, Jesus Seineke, behind the wheel has been written about before when residents first spotted his black and red car draped with the flag. He lives in Alpine and had a gun-violence restraining order issued to him in December 2019 (expired in December 2020).

According to Rabbi Joshua Dorsch with the Tifereth Israel Synagogue in the Cowles Mountain area, it doesn’t matter the reasoning. He said the symbol is hateful and concerning to the community. “It symbolized murder, it symbolizes the worst atrocities committed in human existence,” Rabbi Dorsch said. “It’s also a trigger as San Diego is home to a lot of Holocaust survivors.”

According to the Jewish Federation of San Diego County, 500 Holocaust survivors live in San Diego.

Rabbi Dorsch said when you look at the Poway Synagogue shooting and the attack on the U.S. Capitol on January 6, antisemitism is rearing its head.

“There’s definitely a heightened awareness of the antisemitism in our society and in the world around us going on right now,” Rabbi Dorsch said.

Despite the public outcry, the La Mesa Police Department says there have been no complaints filed against the car or the flag.

“We are aware of the recent social media post depicting a vehicle displaying a swastika on its window in La Mesa,” a police spokesperson said in an email to News 8. “If any crimes arise regarding this vehicle or its occupants they will be documented and fully investigated.”