A Chicago man has been charged with making an online threat to attack a Jewish synagogue, according to an announcement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office on Mar. 23.
The case raises concerns about threats against religious communities and efforts by law enforcement to address anti-Semitic behavior.
According to the criminal complaint filed in the Northern District of Illinois, Timothy Holmes posted on X (formerly Twitter) on March 3, “I’m going to shoot up a synagogue.” The post was made in response to an official account of the Israeli government regarding the death of Ayatollah Sayyid Ali Hosseini Khamenei in Iran. The FBI National Threat Operation Section received information about this threat and discovered additional posts from Holmes’s account that included derisive comments about Jewish people and shared what he claimed was the address of relatives of an Israeli government official.
Holmes, age 31, was arrested in Florida and appeared in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida. Despite objections from prosecutors, he was released on $100,000 bond under several conditions: no possession of firearms or dangerous weapons, no contact with victims or witnesses, no access to social media or chat-based platforms, GPS monitoring by court order, electronic device checks for compliance verification, and restricted travel between Illinois and Florida districts. Holmes is scheduled for a future federal court appearance in Chicago.
United States Attorney Andrew S. Boutros said: “Anti-Semitism has no place in our society. The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Chicago is using all available legal tools to combat criminal conduct that rears its head in hateful anti-Semitism. This Administration has made clear that threats and violence against the Jewish community will not be tolerated. Working closely with our law enforcement partners, we will find, prosecute, and hold accountable the perpetrators of unlawful anti-Semitic threats and violence.”
FBI Special Agent-in-Charge Douglas S. DePodesta said: “The FBI works 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and 365 days a year to swiftly detect and disrupt threats of violence across the country. Anti-Semitic speech and threats against the Jewish community are reprehensible, and our law enforcement and prosecutorial partners remain committed to holding accountable those seeking to intimidate or harm. Public tips are key in our shared effort of keeping Chicago safe.”
Officials remind the public that charges are not evidence of guilt; Holmes is presumed innocent until proven guilty at trial where prosecutors must prove their case beyond reasonable doubt.
