The FBI has identified a suspect responsible for a threat to synagogues across New Jersey that prompted authorities to warn residents to “take all security precautions.”
“We identified the source of the threat who no longer poses a danger to the community,” the agency’s Newark office said Friday.
The suspect was interviewed about what authorities described Thursday as a “broad threat” against Jewish houses of worship, WNBC reported.
Multiple law enforcement sources told the outlet Friday that he spoke about the anger he harbored toward Jews, but allegedly claimed he would not hurt them because he wouldn’t want to get into trouble.
Though the suspect no longer poses a threat, authorities urged residents Friday to “remain vigilant and if they observe suspicious activity to report it to law enforcement immediately.”
The agency had shared Thursday that it had received “credible information” about a threat against Garden state synagogues.
“We ask at this time that you take all security precautions to protect your community and facility. We will share more information as soon as we can. Stay alert. In case of emergency call police,” the bureau said.
The rare alert was posted after officials discovered an online threat directed broadly at synagogues in the state, a law enforcement official told the Associated Press on Thursday on condition of anonymity.
The online posting did not target any synagogue by name, the official added.
Gov. Phil Murphy had said that his office was “closely monitoring the situation” and “working with local law enforcement to ensure that all houses of worship are protected.”
New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin said in a statement that “law enforcement will be increasing patrols in sensitive areas.”
“Some of these patrols will be in marked vehicles and others will not — but please do not be alarmed if you observe an increase in police presence as we are taking these steps in an abundance of caution,” he said.
“We also call upon New Jersey residents to be extra vigilant and if you see suspicious activity please report it to your local authorities without delay,” Platkin added.
Meanwhile, the NYPD announced that “in an abundance of caution,” its Intelligence and Counterterrorism Bureaus “are working diligently alongside the Joint Terrorism Task Force and the FBI to ensure the safety and well-being of every area that encompasses our Jewish citizens and synagogues here in New York City and the Tri-State area.”
Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop said police would be posted at the city’s seven synagogues and that foot patrols would be added in the broader Jewish community.
In December 2019, two assailants motivated by anti-Jewish hatred killed a police detective near a Jersey City cemetery, then drove to a kosher market and killed three more people.
They were later killed in a gun battle with police.
Meanwhile, in Hoboken, heavily armed police guarded a synagogue and the public safety director announced increased patrols in Jewish areas in response to the FBI’s alert.
Five years ago, two New Jersey men were sentenced to 35 years behind bars after being convicted for a series of attacks in 2012 that included the fire bombings of two synagogues.
They also tossed a Molotov cocktail into the home of a rabbi as he slept with his wife and kids.
In February, the US Department of Homeland Security warned of heightened threats from extremist groups against synagogues, churches, and historically black colleges and universities.
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