Alexander Giannakakis, who was extradited from Sweden in 2024 and who pleaded guilty in November to blocking an FBI probe of arson attacks on Boston-area Jewish sites, was sentenced to 42 months in prison on Tuesday, the U.S. Justice Department stated.
Giannakakis, 37, of Quincy, Mass., was also sentenced to three years of supervised release after his prison term. He had been facing up to 60 years in prison for a combined three counts, three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine.
In May 2019, Giannakakis’s younger brother, whom the Justice Department did not name, was accused of setting fires three times at two Chabad Houses and a fourth fire at a Jewish-affiliated business, all in the Boston area.
After his brother was identified as a suspect in 2020, Giannakakis left the United States for Sweden and took his brother’s electronic devices and documents. He also admitted to destroying evidence that could have implicated his brother.
His brother was hospitalized in a coma at the time and died later that year.
“With today’s sentence, Alexander Giannakakis learned the hard way that the family ties that bind you together can also land you in federal prison,” stated Jodi Cohen, special agent in charge of the FBI’s Boston Division.
Giannakakis “destroyed evidence and obstructed the FBI’s investigation into his brother’s acts of domestic terrorism that sent shockwaves of fear throughout the Jewish community,” Cohen said. “Instead of doing what was right and calling out his brother’s vile conduct, Mr. Giannakakis tried to cover for him. Anyone who thinks they can lie to us and get away with it should think twice.”
“The FBI can’t properly carry out investigations if the people we interview think they can deceive us without consequence,” she added.