2 Men Arrested After Allegedly Threatening Synagogues

2023-02-15 17:25:56 By : Ms. EVA MAO

Glenn Garner is a Writer/Reporter who works heavily with PEOPLE's Movies and TV verticals. Since graduating from Northern Arizona University with a dual major in journalism and photography, he got his professional start at OUT Magazine, The Advocate and Teen Vogue, and he's since consistently kept his finger on the pulse of the LGBTQ community. His first book The Guncle Guide was released in 2020 and was featured on Katie Couric's list of 100 recommended books of the year.

An arrest in New York may have halted an act of terrorism against the city's Jewish community.

NYPD Commissioner Keechant Sewell said in a statement that after their FBI joint counterterrorism task force "uncovered a developing threat to the Jewish community" on Friday, Christopher Brown, 21, of Suffolk County was arrested Saturday at Penn Station.

She credited "sharp-eyed" MTA police officers for spotting Brown entering the train station with another man — identified as 22-year-old Matthew Mahrer of Manhattan — after a photo was issued with an intelligence alert, according to ABC News.

Brown, who police say was found with a large hunting knife, has been charged with making a terroristic threat, aggravated harassment and criminal possession of a weapon. Additionally, an illegal Glock 17 firearm, a 30-round magazine and several other items were discovered at Brown's apartment, ABC News reported.

According to ABC News, police said Brown previously "made recent threats to unknown Jewish Synagogues in the New York Area."

Mahrer was also charged with criminal possession of a weapon, according to an NYPD spokesperson.

"Today, we're extremely grateful to NYPD investigators and our law enforcement partners who uncovered and stopped a threat to our Jewish community," Commissioner Sewell said in another statement shared on Twitter. "This morning's arrests in Penn Station and weapon seizures are proof of their vigilance & collaboration that keeps New Yorkers safe."

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An investigation into Brown is ongoing "to establish a strong prosecution," Sewell said in her prior statement. ABC News reported that prosecutors are considering additional charges.

After the FBI warned of a "broad threat to synagogues" in New Jersey in a statement on Twitter earlier this month, they announced the next day that they discovered the source of the threat, and he "no longer poses a danger to the community."

Omar Alkattoul, 18, of Sayreville has since been arrested and charged with one count of transmitting a threat in interstate and foreign commerce, according to CNN. He faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

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