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Michigan man gets year and a day in prison for antisemitic online threats

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Michigan man gets year and a day in prison for antisemitic online threats

A 20-year-old Michigan man who admitted using social media to make violent threats against Jewish people was sentenced Monday to a year and a day in prison, far short of what prosecutors had recommended.

A sentence exceeding a year makes someone eligible for good conduct credits and a shorter stay in federal custody.

Seann Pietila, who has been locked up since June, was accused of using Instagram to spread neo-Nazi ideology, discuss plans to kill people and praise mass shooters.

MICHIGAN MAN PLEADS GUILTY TO THREATENING VIOLENT, ANTI-SEMITIC ATTACK ONLINE

Pietila admitted that he told someone last summer about a plan to kill or injure Jewish people and wanted to post the attack online. The FBI said Pietila also had written the name of the Shaarey Zedek congregation in East Lansing, near Michigan State University, on his phone along with a 2024 date.

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A Michigan man has been sentenced to over a year in prison for violent, antisemitic threats he made online.

“He never sent the note to anyone or posted it in a public forum,” defense attorney Scott Tilton said.

Pietila moved to the Lansing area from the Upper Peninsula when he was 16 years old. Tilton said he’s had cognitive issues as well as depression and anxiety.

“Mr. Pietila understands that his words have meaning, his messages were harmful, and that there are consequences for his actions,” Tilton said in a court filing.

Prosecutors had sought a prison sentence of nearly three years. But U.S. District Judge Robert Jonker settled on 366 days, along with $10,648 in restitution to the synagogue for security. Pietila will get credit for nearly nine months already spent in jail.

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“The preponderance of the evidence supports the conclusion that (Pietila) started down a path of desiring to kill people because of their religion or race and was interrupted by law enforcement before he was able to act on his desire,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher O’Connor said in a court document.

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Detroit, MI

Part of Detroit Riverwalk reopens after infrastructure work

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Part of Detroit Riverwalk reopens after infrastructure work


Detroit — A three-block portion of the Detroit Riverwalk just north of the Renaissance Center reopened this week after being closed for five months for the installation of an underground drainage system, state officials announced.

The stretch of the pedestrian and bicycle path that had been closed since Nov. 20 is between Beaubien and Rivard streets in downtown Detroit. Crews for the Michigan Department of Transportation installed a new storm sewer outfall intended to reduce the risk of flooding on nearby streets, officials said.

The sewer outfall is part of the larger I-375 project, a major infrastructure initiative around the I-375 corridor.

Sewer outfalls are key components of wastewater management systems, designed to safely discharge water and waste while protecting public health and the environment.

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“The new storm sewer outfall will provide lasting environmental benefits for residents and businesses along the I-375 corridor and the riverfront by supporting cleaner water being discharged into the Detroit River and relieving pressure on the existing city combined sewer system after heavy rain events,” according to an MDOT press statement Thursday. “The installation of the new storm sewer will reduce the risk of flooding on streets and in neighborhoods.”

This week’s opening of the Riverwalk is ahead of the May 1 target date that had been set.

“Crews worked diligently through harsh winter and wet spring conditions to achieve our goal of reopening prior to seasonal festivities starting up,” said Jason Garza, MDOT’s Metro Region Deputy Engineer.

In addition to reopening the Riverwalk, crews also opened Atwater and Franklin streets to through-traffic between St. Antoine and Rivard streets.

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The opening comes as the popular Riverwalk area is set to kick into high gear with a variety of events. The Riverwalk path runs continuously from Gabriel Richard Park, just east of the bridge leading to Belle Isle, to the Ralph Wilson park to the west. It attracts about 3 million people annually, according to the Detroit Riverfront Conservancy, the nonprofit that manages the Riverwalk and many of the adjoining parks and connected pedestrian/bike paths.

On Thursday afternoon, the Riverwalk was busy with walkers, bicyclists and people fishing such as Terraile Jefferson, 56, from Detroit.

“It’s always a good experience out here,” Jefferson said. “Especially when I catch something good.”

laguilar@detroitnews.com

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Milwaukee, WI

Milwaukee Bucks to hire Taylor Jenkins in bid to keep Antetokounmpo this summer

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Milwaukee Bucks to hire Taylor Jenkins in bid to keep Antetokounmpo this summer


The Milwaukee Bucks became the first NBA team to hire a new coach this offseason, targeting and landing former Memphis Grizzlies head coach Taylor Jenkins to succeed Doc Rivers.

According to ESPN’s Shams Charania, Jenkins and the Bucks’ front office were finalizing a deal on Thursday afternoon to bring the 41-year-old former Milwaukee assistant back to serve as the franchise’s fourth coach since parting ways with Mike Budenholzer in 2023.

Jenkins served as an assistant under Budenholzer in 2018-19 after serving under him for five seasons in Atlanta. 

Rumors of Jenkins being spotted with Milwaukee star Giannis Antetokounmpo, who faces a decision regarding his own future this summer, made the rounds on social media this week as unconfirmed sightings suggested the Bucks’ franchise star was helping the coach tour schools.

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Bobby Portis, under contract for next season and holding a player option for ‘28-’29, was on popular NBA show “Run it Back and believed landing him to lead the team going forward would be a positive in convincing Antetokounmpo to stay put.

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“What helps is that (Jenkins) was in Milwaukee during Coach Bud’s stint in Milwaukee. He was one of the assistant coaches on the roster,” Portis said. “I think that kind of relationship with Giannis and that kind of relationship with (GM) Jon Horst sits well with the franchise, and I think that kind of helps”

Horst and Bucks ownership courted Jenkins in Memphis and clearly zeroed in on him as the top target in the coaching search. Although what Antetokounmpo is going to do is anyone’s guess, keeping the “Greek Freak” in Milwaukee has been the franchise’s primary objective over the last few years as rumors he was growing dissatisfied with the direction of the team intensified, so it’s clear that the team’s leadership views Jenkins as an asset in retaining Antetokounmpo’s services.

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ESPN’s Charania reported that Antetokounmpo wasn’t involved in Jenkins’ hiring and has had no communication with the Bucks.

Jenkins went 250-214 in six seasons with the Grizzlies, but was fired late in the 2024-25 season with a postseason berth lined up. He was linked to the New York Knicks opening last summer that Mike Brown ultimately filled and was going to be a candidate for the vacancies in Chicago and potentially Orlando if the Magic move on from Jamahl Mosley after their postseason run ends.

Jenkins was already in Memphis when the Bucks broke through to win the NBA Finals in 2021, but he reportedly had a great relationship with Antetokounmpo and helped set the foundation for the last big winner in Milwaukee. The Bucks lost 50 games this past season, missing the playoffs for the first time since 2015-16 under then-head coach Jason Kidd.

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Minneapolis, MN

Minneapolis Man Gets 8.5 Years For Trying To Join ISIS In Somalia

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Minneapolis Man Gets 8.5 Years For Trying To Join ISIS In Somalia


MINNEAPOLIS, MN — A 23-year-old Minneapolis man was sentenced Wednesday to 102 months in prison and 15 years of supervised release after pleading guilty to attempting to provide material support and resources to ISIS, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Minnesota.

Prosecutors said Abdisatar Ahmed Hassan tried to travel from Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport to Somalia in December 2024 to join and fight for the foreign terrorist organization.

ISIS has been designated a foreign terrorist organization by the U.S. secretary of state since 2014.

According to court documents cited by federal prosecutors, Hassan consumed and reposted ISIS propaganda, obtained bombmaking and weapons-related manuals, and communicated on social media with ISIS media wings and recruiters operating in Somalia.

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The U.S. attorney’s office said Hassan bought a one-way ticket, left Minneapolis for Chicago on Dec. 29, 2024, and was prevented from continuing to Somalia after an interview by Customs and Border Protection’s Tactical Terrorism Response Team.

Prosecutors said he later continued researching ISIS attacks and posting pro-ISIS content online before the FBI arrested him on Feb. 27, 2025.

Hassan pleaded guilty Sept. 29, 2025, before Judge Donovan W. Frank, who imposed the sentence on April 22.

In the announcement, FBI Minneapolis Special Agent in Charge Christopher D. Dotson said, “Abdisatar Hassan took active steps in an attempt to join and support ISIS—a brutal foreign terrorist organization responsible for the violent deaths of thousands of innocent people.”

He added that the sentence “takes a would-be terrorist off the streets and sends a clear message that the FBI and our partners will unremittingly pursue anyone seeking to join or support a foreign terrorist organization.”

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This case was investigated by the FBI, the Joint Terrorism Task Force, Customs and Border Protection and the New York Police Department.





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