FBI Locates Suspect After Warning of Security Threat at NJ Synagogues - The New York Times

Hours aft issuing a uncommon informing astir a information hazard astatine New Jersey synagogues, the Federal Bureau of Investigation identified a antheral who holds “radical extremist views,” and was the root of the threat, a national authoritative told religion leaders Friday morning.

It was not wide whether helium was successful custody, but officials said the menace had been “mitigated.”

“He nary longer poses a menace to the assemblage astatine this time,” James E. Dennehy, the peculiar cause successful complaint of the F.B.I.’s Newark office, said during a greeting league telephone with authorities and national instrumentality enforcement officials and much than 500 Jewish leaders.

Mr. Dennehy said investigators believed that the man, who is from New Jersey, was acting alone, but they are continuing to prosecute leads astir radical helium mightiness person been successful interaction with. The antheral was not publically identified, and officials offered no further information astir whether helium had been charged with a crime.

He was located Thursday night, officials said, and questioned for a “few hours.”

“He expressed radical, extremist views and ideology, arsenic good arsenic an utmost magnitude of hatred against the Jewish community,” Mr. Dennehy said.

Incidents of harassment and violence against Jews and Jewish institutions person accrued nationwide and person lone intensified arsenic celebrities similar the rapper Kanye West, who goes by the sanction Ye, and the hoops subordinate Kyrie Irving, person travel nether occurrence for expressions of antisemitism.

It was against this backdrop that the F.B.I.’s Newark bureau made the determination connected Thursday day to merchandise an unusual warning connected societal media stating that it had received “credible accusation of a wide menace to synagogues” successful New Jersey.

During the league call, which besides included Gov. Philip D. Murphy and the state’s lawyer general, Matthew J. Platkin, Mr. Dennehy said the F.B.I. was alert that the wide and unspecified quality of the informing was unsettling to many.

But helium said the determination was made to instantly publicize the menace fixed its timing — conscionable up of the Jewish Sabbath, arsenic children were being released connected Thursday from spiritual schools.

“We wanted to scope the widest assemblage successful the quickest mode possible,” helium said. “It was not our intent to origin panic oregon alarm.”

Mr. Murphy said connected the telephone that portion helium was grateful the antheral had been located quickly, helium understood that it remained a fraught clip for Jewish residents arsenic incidents of antisemitism emergence nationwide.

“As contiguous is the Sabbath, we bash not privation anyone to consciousness acrophobic arsenic they caput to synagogue,” Mr. Murphy said. “We volition bash what we indispensable to guarantee that everyone tin commune successful safety, information and peace.”

Last year, New Jersey recorded the second-highest fig of antisemitic incidents successful the country, down New York, according to the Anti-Defamation League.

Of the 370 incidents reported passim the state, 44 took spot astatine Jewish institutions and progressive harassment, vandalism and assault, according to an audit done by the league.

Rabbi Yisroel Bursztyn, a laminitis of the National Chaplains Association, a Jewish enactment based successful Lakewood, N.J., said helium was appreciative that instrumentality enforcement agencies had not taken Thursday’s menace lightly.

“Living successful fearfulness is ne'er an option,” said Rabbi Bursztyn, a chaplain who works intimately with instrumentality enforcement departments and successful correctional facilities.

Scott Richman, determination manager of the Anti-Defamation League’s New York and New Jersey office, said that the enactment had seen an uptick successful incidents of hatred successful the aftermath of the publicity surrounding the antisemitic comments Ye posted connected societal media.

A week aft a banner was hung implicit a Los Angeles freeway that work “Kanye is close astir the Jews,” a similar poster appeared implicit a roadway successful Yonkers, N.Y., Mr. Richman said. Laser images with a akin connection were besides projected astatine a shot crippled and against buildings successful Jacksonville, Fla., helium noted.

“This was each conscionable an effort to leap connected the Kanye bandwagon,” helium said, adding, “All of this spawns tons much antisemitism.”