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Staff at Temple Israel reported to the Minneapolis Police
Department on Sept. 11 that they had received several phone
calls from a person threatening to “shoot up” the synagogue.
Then on Thursday, a special police detail assigned provide extra
patrols around Temple Israel ahead of the Jewish new year and
the one-year anniversary of the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel
were notified of a man outside with a firearm. He fled the area,
but officers arrested a 21-year-old man the next day.
“Everyone in Minneapolis has the right to feel safe in their
communities, and we will ensure our Jewish neighbors are
protected as they celebrate the holy days,” Minneapolis Police
Chief Brian Chief O’Hara said at a news conference. “We take all
threats made against our religious institutions seriously, and
will continue to hold the individuals accountable who threaten
any of our city’s houses of worship."
O'Hara said officers learned the man had used a phone app to
mask his voice as he made repeated threats against the
synagogue.
Officers did not recover a gun.
The man was arrested for making “terroristic threats” and
charges will be referred to the Hennepin County Attorney’s
Office. O’Hara said officers had not found evidence the threat
was motivated by antisemitism, but he said the timing of the
threats was concerning.
“Since the Oct. 7 terrorist attacks, the worst terrorist attack
on our Jewish community since the Holocaust, our police officers
have been present where a whole lot of hateful rhetoric has been
said against our residents, against members of our community,
simply because they are Jewish,” O’Hara said.
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