Michael Keidar, a 27-year-old American-Israeli known as the “Ashkelon hacker,” was extradited to the United States last week and brought before a federal court in Orlando, Florida, for the first time. He had already served seven years in Israel for sending terror threats to Jewish institutions.
U.S. prosecutors have now charged him with similar conduct in Florida, accusing him of hate crimes and interference with religious freedom against Jewish community sites across the state, including community centers, schools, and kindergartens. The Justice Department says Keidar carried out the threats using sophisticated technology from his home in Ashkelon.
If convicted, Keidar could face up to 35 years in prison. According to the Justice Department, the hate-crime counts each carry a maximum of 20 years, bomb-threat counts carry up to 10 years each, and interstate threats carry up to five years. The court could also order him to pay compensation to the institutions and victims affected.
Federal officials condemned the alleged campaign in strong terms. An assistant attorney general said the crimes were marked by “cruelty” and by the harm they caused the Jewish community, adding that using technology to terrorize houses of worship and community centers is an attack on religious freedom and public safety. The U.S. attorney in Florida said deliberate harm to people, groups, or institutions because of their faith violates constitutional freedoms and caused unnecessary fear. The extradition opens a new chapter in Keidar’s legal case, after his earlier conviction and lengthy prison term in Israel.
