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Indiana man arrested over alleged threats to kill pro-Israel government officials

Written by ABC AUDIO ALL RIGHTS RESERVED on February 13, 2024

(WASHINGTON) –An Indiana man was arrested Tuesday for allegedly posting threats to kill Jewish people and U.S. government officials who expressed support for Israel following Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack, newly unsealed court records show.

An FBI arrest affidavit says Jeffrey Stevens, 41, admitted in interviews with law enforcement that he leveled the threats in posts to the CIA’s website as well as in a Facebook direct message to the Fort Wayne Police Department.

“I am going to shoot every pro-israel US government official in the head, and there is nothing you can do about it because you are the pathetic CIA,” Stevens allegedly said in a Nov. 17 post to the agency. “I am going to kill all of you.”

In his message to the Fort Worth Police Department, Stevens allegedly wrote, “I am going to kill every Jew in [Fort] Wayne, and there is nothing you can do about it,” the charging docs say.

Stevens, according to his arrest affidavit, tried to explain the posts to law enforcement by telling them he has a “drinking problem.”

His arrest is the latest in a wave of threats cases brought by the FBI in the wake of Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel that killed at least 1,200 people. In the Gaza Strip, at least 28,473 people have been killed by Israeli forces since the attack, according to Gaza’s Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health.

In an exclusive interview with ABC News’ Pierre Thomas in December, Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco revealed the FBI had seen a surge of “more than 1800” reports of threats and tips in some way related to the conflict, with more than 100 criminal investigations opened as a result.

Stevens has not yet entered a plea in his case and did not have an attorney listed for him as of Tuesday afternoon. The government has moved for him to remain detained pending trial, citing what they argue is his danger to the community and risk of fleeing prosecution.