Elijah Alexander King, 36, who allegedly threatened to bomb every synagogue within a 20-mile radius, was arraigned on Tuesday on a three-count federal indictment, the U.S. Justice Department said.
The resident of San Luis Obispo, Calif., near the coast some 100 miles northwest of Santa Barbara, was charged with three counts related to making threats and conveying hoaxes.
The defendant, who pleaded not guilty and who had been in federal custody since Nov. 6, is set to go to trial on Jan. 13, the department said. He is to be released on bond.
He is accused of making the threat that “I’m gonna blow up every synagogue in a 20-mile radius” on social media on Aug. 28, using what the Justice Department said was an email address and phone number that “he is known to use.”
Shortly after posting the threat, King wrote that “this is a real threat. Send the police and report me for terrorism,” and some 10 minutes later, he searched on his phone for synagogues nearby, the Justice Department said.
Even after police had King sent to a hospital for monitoring, he kept posting on social media, according to the Justice Department, including writing that “I got arrested and put on a three-day psych hold for my posts against the Jews.” He also allegedly shared someone else post saying that there is a need for “Jew control” not “gun control.”
King has also posted “antisemitic rhetoric, including praise for Adolf Hitler,” and messages with “images of weapons, including a handgun, knives and mace,” and has sent “numerous” racist emails and voicemails to the police detective who placed the pyschiatric hold on him, the Justice Department said.
King faces up to 15 years in prison for the charges.
