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On the morning of November 4, 2023, 50-year-old Jeffrey Mindock of Tempe was apprehended on a federal complaint and arrest warrant by the Federal Bureau of Investigation for threatening to kill a local Rabbi.
A press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Arizona, stated that as per the federal complaint, on the morning of November 3, 2023, Jeffrey reportedly sent an email to a Rabbi at a local synagogue in Scottsdale, where he asked the Rabbi to convince a judge in Utah to drop the charges against him in a separate state district court case there.
According to the press release by the U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Arizona, part of the email read:
"If you do not use your influence to right this wrong I will execute you and every other JEW [sic] I can find tonight at midnight of your Sabbath."
Jeffrey Mindock reportedly referenced the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict in the email
The press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Arizona, stated that in the email sent by Jeffrey Mindock, he mentioned that he would only meet in person and even wrote down his address:
"If you wish to communicate with me further, I will only meet in person."
According to the press release by the U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Arizona, Jeffrey signed the email as "Shalom, Viktor Sitkevicz," and the address he provided was the same as the one in Tempe listed in motor vehicle records.
ABC News reported that as per the criminal complaint, the subject of the email was, "HITLER WAS RIGHT RABBI," and Mindock even referred to the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict.
According to ABC News, Jeffrey Mindock reportedly wrote:
"As I have watched the atrocities unfolding in Palestine, I have come to the realization that YOU people are to blame for everything evil in this world. Zionist Jews control everything from the courts to the banks to the media. We both know that you are in control."
The United States Attorney's Office, District of Arizona, is in charge of the prosecution of the case.
Jeffrey Mindock allegedly has a history of threatening behavior
The press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Arizona, stated that prior to this threat, Jeffrey Mindock had also sent an email threat to "hang" a judge. That was sent from email addresses that included "sitkevicz" or "mindock."
AZ Family reported that in August, Jeffrey also made a death threat against a southern Utah judge, stating that he would "hang from the gallows."
The press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Arizona, stated that during a court hearing in 2021, Jeffrey made another death threat:
"The complaint further alleges that Mindock's threatening behavior extended to another prior email threat to "hang" a judge sent from email addresses containing "sitkevicz" or "mindock," and another threat made during a previous court appearance in 2021 to "execute" others."
In the light of the incident, United States Attorney, Gary Restaino, noted:
"Civic engagement and civil dialogue help bind us together as a Nation. We have no tolerance for those who send threatening communications to Jewish faith leaders or to any other people in America. We will continue to exercise our prosecutorial discretion and deploy our resources to charge threats cases here in Arizona."
Acting special agent in charge of the FBI's Phoenix field office, Chad Alvarado, stated:
"The FBI takes all threats of violence seriously. The FBI and our law enforcement partners must take people who make threats at their word and intervene, because protecting human life is our absolute priority."
ABC News reported that on November 6, 2023, Jeffrey made his initial appearance and was assigned a public defender. He has not entered a plea and will remain in custody till a date for the detention hearing is set.
U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Arizona, reported that the Federal Bureau of Investigation, along with the help of the Tempe Police Department and the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office, has led the investigation in this case. Prosecutors have up to 30 days from his arrest to seek an indictment of Jeffrey Mindock.
