A man was arrested at John F. Kennedy Airport in New York on Sunday following an alleged attempt to firebomb the a branch office of the U.S. Embassy in Tel Aviv, Israel, the Justice Department said in a statement.
The man, named Joseph Neumayer, is a dual American and German citizen and was detained in Israel on May 19 after a hostile confrontation with a security guard in front of the office earlier that day, according to the Justice Department.
A search of a backpack he left behind at the embassy after the confrontation “revealed three rudimentary improvised incendiary devices commonly known as Molotov cocktails,” the statement added.
The Justice Department also said that Neumayer, 28, posted the following on social media: “Join me as I burn down the embassy in Tel Aviv. Death to America, death to Americans, and f— the west.”
He also made threats on social media to assassinate President Donald Trump, the statement added.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment from NBC News.
“The Department will not tolerate such violence and will prosecute this defendant to the fullest extent of the law,” U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a statement after Israel turned Neumayer over to the U.S. on Sunday.
FBI Director Kash Patel added in a statement, “This despicable and violent behavior will not be tolerated at home or abroad, and the FBI, working with our partners, will bring him to face justice for his dangerous actions.”
Neumayer, who was deported to the U.S. by Israeli authorities, could face up to 20 years in prison if convicted.
His arrest comes several days after two staffers who worked at the Israeli Embassy in Washington were killed leaving an event at the Capital Jewish Museum.
The suspect in that shooting, Elias Rodriguez, was later charged with two counts of first-degree murder. According to videos taken at the scene and posted to social media, Rodriguez shouted “Free, free Palestine” following his arrest.
Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke the day after the shooting, with Netanyahu condemning the act as a “horrifying antisemitic murder.”
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
