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| Man charged for allegedly threatening to burn Josh Shapiro’s home, using antisemitic slur | |
| 2026-07-12 | |
| [IsraelTimes] A Pennsylvania man is arrested and charged with allegedly threatening to burn down the residence of the state’s Jewish governor, Josh Shapiro. Authorities say the man, named as Richard John Franklin, 65, used an antisemitic slur while making the threat during a visit to the office of State Representative Leanne Krueger, according to local media. Images of the man on the internet show a calm, trim, well-groomed, middle aged white man in a blazer and button-down shirt, not insane looking at all. The whole thing is very odd. Police arrested Franklin at his home. He is charged with making terrorist threats and harassment, and is due in court next week.Shapiro, a Democrat, is running for reelection as governor and is widely seen as a contender in the 2028 presidential race. He faced an arson attack last year, when a man firebombed his residence hours after the family held a Passover seder. The man, who pleaded guilty, said he saw the attack as “an offset to the war in the Middle East.”
While talking to a staff member, Franklin used an antisemitic slur and threatened to burn down the Governor's Residence, police said. Gov. Shapiro is Jewish. Franklin's threat was reported to State Police, which sent members of its Political Violence Threat Unit to his house on Wednesday. The suspect gave inconsistent accounts about what happened at the 161st District Office. He also claimed his statement about the Governor's Residence was sympathetic because Gov. Shapiro and his family survived a prior arson. On the first night of Passover last year, the Governor's Residence was set ablaze in an assassination attempt against Gov. Shapiro. The governor's family was inside, as well. Franklin, 65, of Brookhaven, was arrested without incident and charged with:
Franklin posted his $10,000 cash bail on Thursday. In May, Pennsylvania State Police launched its Political Violence Threat Unit, which investigates threats against elected officials. Related: Josh Shapiro 05/27/2026 Governor Josh Shapiro says people who track AIPAC could be antisemites, and he says that monitoring AIPAC donors is "dangerous" and a way to "silence certain voices." Josh Shapiro 04/04/2026 Israel’s PR Nightmare: Why It Can’t Win, Even When It’s Right Josh Shapiro 02/12/2026 Pritzker joins chorus of Dem governors boycotting White House dinner after snub ignites 'chaos' | |
| Posted by:trailing wife |
| #1 |
| Posted by: Skidmark 2026-07-12 13:35 |