Man indicted on firebombing attempt of Mass. Jewish-sponsored assisted living facility
John Michael Rathbun Image by Handout
(JTA) — A federal grand jury has indicted a Massachusetts man accused of using a homemade explosive to commit arson at a Jewish-sponsored assisted living facility.
John Michael Rathbun, 36, was charged on two counts Tuesday, according to a statement issued by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Massachusetts. He faces up to 10 years in prison.
The targeted facility, Ruth’s House in Longmeadow, a suburb of Springfield, is situated within one square mile of several other Jewish facilities, including three synagogues, a Jewish private school and a Jewish community center. The facility is owned by JGS Lifecare.
Rathbun was arrested on April 15 and has been in federal custody since April 17.
His homemade bomb, discovered on April 2, was made of a five-gallon plastic gas canister filled with flammable liquid, with burnt paper later identified as a Christian religious pamphlet placed in the nozzle of the canister, according to the complaint. Part of the pamphlet was charred after being lit on fire in an attempt to ignite the gas.
The post Massachusetts man indicted in attempt to firebomb a Jewish-sponsored assisted living facility appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning journalism this Passover.
In this age of misinformation, our work is needed like never before. We report on the news that matters most to American Jews, driven by truth, not ideology.
At a time when newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall. That means for the first time in our 126-year history, Forward journalism is free to everyone, everywhere. With an ongoing war, rising antisemitism, and a flood of disinformation that may affect the upcoming election, we believe that free and open access to Jewish journalism is imperative.
Readers like you make it all possible. Right now, we’re in the middle of our Passover Pledge Drive and we still need 300 people to step up and make a gift to sustain our trustworthy, independent journalism.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
Only 300 more gifts needed by April 30
