Mississippi man arrested for targeting Pennsylvania synagogues, Jewish-owned businesses

A Mississippi man was arrested on felony charges accusing him of targeting Pennsylvanian synagogues and Jewish-owned businesses by calling them — some as many as 15 times — and making antisemitic threats.

Donavon Parish, 28, of Hattiesburg, Mississippi, was charged on June 27 with cyberstalking and communicating interstate threats in an indictment unsealed Thursday, the U.S. Department of Justice announced.

Parish could be sentenced to up to 50 years in prison and a $2.5 million fine if convicted. A defense attorney wasn’t listed.

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Parish used voice-over-internet-protocol technology to call three businesses and three synagogues in April and May 2022, according to the indictment. A federal grand jury determined that he intentionally selected those locations because of the perceived and actual religion of the people there, and made comments about killing Jews when they answered the phone.

Parish called one business 15 times, and one synagogue he called at least twice also housed a preschool and kindergarten, the indictment states.