Nov. 26 (UPI) — A Massachusetts man has pleaded guilty to threatening to kill Jews and bomb synagogues amid an increase in threats directed at the Jewish community over Israel’s war in Gaza.
John Reardon, 59, of Millis, Mass., located about 30 miles southwest of Boston, pleaded guilty Monday to leaving threatening voicemails for Massachusetts synagogues and a Jewish organization early this year, the Justice Department said in a statement.
According to federal prosecutors, Reardon made the phone calls on Jan. 25, first to the Congregation Agudas Achim, an Attleboro synagogue, and then to another unidentified synagogue and a Jewish organization.
Excerpts of the two-minute voicemail that Reardon left for the Congregation Agudas Achim were reproduced in court documents, showing he threatened its members with lethal violence in retaliation for Israel’s war in Palestinian enclave of Gaza.
He told the synagogue, “by supporting genocide, that means it’s OK for people to commit genocide against you,” and that “with supporting the killing of innocent little children, that means it’s OK to kill your children.”
“I supported Jewish people though. Not anymore. A matter of fact, I think we should kill you(s) all,” he said, according to excerpts of the call reproduced by the Justice Department.
“Have a lousy day and, oh, don’t be surprised if there’s pig blood on your steps tomorrow.”
Prosecutors also said that between Oct. 7, 2023 — when the Israel-Hamas war began — and Jan. 29, the day of Reardon’s arrest, he made 98 calls to the Israeli Consulate in Boston, many of which included statements the Justice Department described as “intended to harass or intimidate.”
“This defendant’s threats to bomb synagogues and kill Jewish children stoked fear in the hearts of congregants at a time when Jews are already facing a disturbing increase in threats,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement.
“No person and no community in this country should have to live in fear of hate-fueled violence.”
Reardon made the calls amid spiking threats targeting members of the U.S. Jewish community.
According to the Anti-Defamation League, there were more than 10,000 anti-semitic incidents across the United States during the first 12 months of the war, marking a 200% increase compared to the same period a year earlier.
Of those incidents, more than 8,000 were verbal or written harassment, the U.S.-based Jewish organization said.
A sentencing hearing for Reardon is to be scheduled at a later date. Of the three counts he pleaded guilty to, the obstruction of free exercise of religious beliefs by threat of force carries the most severe penalty, with a potential maximum 20 years in prison.
Human remains were discovered Wednesday in the water in Shirley, Massachusetts, and authorities suspect foul play.
Police in Shirley said in a social media post at 7:15 p.m. that they responded to “a suspicious object in the water near the Maritime Veterans Memorial Bridge on Shaker Road.” Massachusetts State Police later said the object was believed to be human remains.
The bridge crosses Catacoonamug Brook near Phoenix Pond.
The office of Middlesex County District Attorney Marian Ryan said a group of young people was walking in the area around 5:30 p.m. and “reported seeing what appeared to be something consistent with a body part in the water.”
Foul play is suspected, Ryan’s office said.
Authorities will continue investigating overnight into Thursday, and an increased police presence is expected in the area.
No further information was immediately available.
It was a treacherous commute for drivers across Massachusetts Wednesday morning. Ice on roads and highways caused several crashes during rush hour.
In Danvers, 22 miles north of Boston, the ramp from Interstate 95 to Route 1 north was covered in ice, leading to three separate crashes involving twelve cars. Three people were taken to local hospitals.
In Revere, just seven miles north of the city, two tractor-trailers collided on North Shore Road. Police said it will be shut down for most of the day. It’s unclear if this crash was caused by icy conditions.
Forty-four miles west of Boston, a tractor-trailer ran off the westbound side of the Massachusetts Turnpike in Westboro. One person was taken to UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester with what were described by the fire department as “non-life threatening injuries.”
The ice wasn’t just a problem for drivers. People walking around Boston were also slipping and sliding Wednesday morning.
“I almost fell at least five times but I didn’t. I don’t know how. I screamed and caught edges,” Swapna Vantzelfde told CBS News Boston about her walk to work in the South End. It took longer than usual.
“The internal streets they just don’t get plowed, the little ones that people live on and then these arteries, the big streets, they’re cleaned a lot better,” she said.
Those on two legs and four were all stepping gingerly across slick spots.
“A little treacherous. Very slick and icy out here,” said a father pushing a stroller. “Sometimes you have something to hold on to, which helps.”
With plenty of snow piled along sidewalks and between parking spots, most people are done with winter.
“I’m over it. I’m ready for the thaw,” said one man.
Massachusetts families are stuck in the Middle East amid the war in Iran, and Democratic Sen. Ed Markey says the State Department needs to do more to get them home.
The Trump administration is telling Americans to leave the region, and families would love to, but they haven’t been able to get out.
Stacey Schuhwerk of Hingham has been sheltering in place in a Doha hotel since Saturday.
“We hear the missiles outside,” she said. “We can see them.”
The Hingham mother and her son are among nearly 1,600 Americans trapped in the Middle East with no way to get home.
“Airspace is shut down. There’s no planes,” said Schuhwerk. “There’s no way to leave.”
Flights between Boston and the Middle East are canceled or delayed as travelers express anxiety over the conflict.
At first, U.S. officials told people to shelter in place and register with the State Department — something Schuhwerk did days ago.
“There’s no help there. The last time we called was 20 minutes ago, and they continue to say that ‘We don’t know anything about any plans for government help to get people out,’” she said.
Embassies and consulates across the region — including the U.S. Embassy in Israel — have now suspended services, saying they simply can’t get Americans out.
“They did not have a plan to conduct this war, and they clearly did not have a plan as to how to evacuate innocent families,” Markey said.
The senator says his office is hearing from Massachusetts families, and he’s pressuring the Trump administration to come up with an evacuation plan fast.
“We are going to apply that pressure on the State Department until every American who wants to leave that region is out,” he said.
Back in Doha, Schuhwerk keeps watching the war outside her window.
“The talk here is ‘How much defensive ammunition’s left?’ Good question, you know, because the missiles aren’t stopping,” she said. “So how long are we going to be safe here?”
With no clear end to this conflict, she’s worried she could be stuck there for weeks.
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