Cliff Seferlis, 55, of Garrett Park, Md., was sentenced to 37 months in prison, a $40,000 fine and $2,200 assessment after admitting to 17 counts of mailing threats to Jewish institutions and eight counts of obstructing free religious exercise, the U.S. Department of Justice said on Monday.
“For more than a year, the defendant terrorized Jewish communities across the country, robbing his victims of their peace and security,” stated Harmeet Dhillon, assistant U.S. attorney general for civil rights.
“The defendant’s sentence should be a warning to all that religious-based terror will not be tolerated in this country,” Dhillon stated.
Seferlis was also sentenced to three years of supervised release after his prison term.
Between March 2024 and June 2025, Seferlis sent at least 40 letters and two post cards to more than 25 synagogues and other Jewish institutions, including synagogues, museums, schools, community centers and a deli.
“Many of these written communications threatened to destroy physical buildings and/or injure individuals,” the Justice Department said.
The letters often included threats or violent language, and some contained newspaper clippings about Israel, Gaza or antisemitic attacks.
In one letter described in court filings, Seferlis warned a synagogue leader to worry about the safety of congregants amid anger over the war in Gaza. In another, he mentioned Kristallnacht and wrote that a Jewish building with “so many big open windows” could become a target.
The letters were typically short, typewritten messages mailed to specific staff members or leaders at Jewish organizations, according to an FBI affidavit supporting the case.
Investigators linked the messages through similarities in the typewritten letters and postal records, and later searched Seferlis’s residence and vehicle. He cooperated with authorities and admitted to sending the letters.
Seferlis waived indictment and pleaded guilty in November to all 25 counts under a written plea agreement.
