Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro had hosted a Passover Seder in the southern wing of the Official Residence hours before a man broke in and set fire to it. Courtesy of PAcast

By Louis Keene April 15, 2025

The man who has been charged with starting a fire in Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro’s official residence on the first night of Passover reportedly told a 911 operator shortly after the attack that he was sending a message to Shapiro that he would not “take part in his plans for what he wants to do to the Palestinian people.”

According to a search warrant obtained by The Patriot-News, a publication serving Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, the suspect, Cody Balmer, identified himself by name and said Shapiro needed to “stop having my friends killed” and that “our people have been put through too much by that monster.”

The warrant says Balmer placed the call at around 2:50 a.m. Sunday, less than an hour after authorities say he scaled a fence, broke into the governor’s mansion in Harrisburg and started a fire in its southern wing with a pair of Molotov cocktails.

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The fire charred much of the space where the Shapiro family had hosted a Passover Seder Saturday night. While the governor’s family and their overnight guests evacuated the residence, no one was hurt in the blaze.

Balmer, 38, turned himself in Sunday afternoon at state police headquarters in Harrisburg. He has already been charged with eight crimes — including seven first-degree felonies — and is facing more than 100 years in prison if convicted.

Dauphin County District Attorney Fran Chardo, who is prosecuting the case, told CBS News Philadelphia on Tuesday there was evidence that Balmer made references to the governor’s faith. But he told The Patriot-News he had not decided whether to also charge Balmer with “ethnic intimidation,” which is Pennsylvania’s version of a hate crime.

In its warrant to search Balmer’s devices, the Pennsylvania State Police also said Balmer targeted Shapiro for his Jewish faith, though it did not say why it believed that was a motive.

According to The Patriot-News, police investigators who searched Balmer’s storage unit in Harrisburg found Che Guevara stickers, but did not find any references to Israel or Palestine.

Shapiro’s support for Israel became a flashpoint last year after he was shortlisted for the Democratic vice presidential nomination. His initial reaction to Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel asserted “Israel’s right to defend itself” and made no mention of Palestinians. Later, he criticized calls for a ceasefire, and said a pro-Palestinian tent encampment at the University of Pennsylvania should be dismantled.

He is also an outspoken critic of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, calling him “a failed leader.”

Christie Balmer, the suspect’s mother, told CBS her son, an army veteran, had struggled with mental illness and recently stopped taking psychiatric medication.

“So he was mentally ill, went off his meds, and this is what happened,” she said.

On Wednesday, Attorney General Pam Bondi condemned the attack as “absolutely horrific” and added, “We have been praying for Josh, for his family. Those photos, it was horrible. I firmly believe that they wanted to kill him.” She declined to name the attack as an act of domestic terrorism but said federal authorities are assisting in the investigation.

FBI Director Kash Patel called Shapiro in the wake of the incident, while President Donald Trump separately described the suspect as “probably just a whack job.”

JTA contributed to this report.

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