Ohio Man Arrested After Video of Antisemitic Threats Went Viral

Viral footage of a stranger targeting a Jewish woman's home by hurling antisemitic abuse at her through her front door sparked a police investigation that culminated with an arrest on Monday.

The 9-second clip was captured by the victim's Ring doorbell camera and was shared online by StopAntisemitism on Sunday. The video of the incident, which took place in Bexley, a suburb of Columbus, Ohio, sparked widespread outrage and has been viewed more than 2.7 million times. Bexley Police Department took suspect Jacob Thomas Reidy into custody this week and charged him with two counts of criminal trespass, alleging he was also responsible for a similar incident at another home nearby.

The incident comes amid heightened tensions as a result of the violence raging in the Middle East, sparked when Palestinian Islamist group Hamas—designated a terrorist organization by the U.S.—launched a surprise attack against Israel on October 7. Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu responded to the attacks by declaring war against Hamas, and launched a series of air strikes that have reduced entire streets to rubble. The Associated Press reported on Monday that more than 1,400 Israelis have been killed, while Gaza authorities reported that 2,670 Palestinians have been killed. Many thousands more have been wounded on both sides, with almost 200 Israeli victims being held captive inside Gaza.

The conflict has seen the rest of the world dividing along familiar fault lines, and the U.S. has seen violence break out at demonstrations and controversial rallies held at American universities, as protesters from both sides clash. A 6-year-old Muslim boy was stabbed to death by his family's landlord in Chicago because he was enraged about the Israel-Hamas conflict, police said.

Posting the clip of the antisemitic attack in Ohio on social media site X, formerly called Twitter, StopAntisemitism captioned it: "Bexley (Columbus area) Ohio - random male walks up to a Jewish woman's home and yells "you Zionist pigs are f*cking disgusting!" Are we in 1939 or 2023? Share and help identify this appalling antisemite!"

The organization later said the woman's nephew had asked them to share the footage to "help find the antisemite."

The clip begins with a man putting his face close to the camera, and he initially seems calm as he appears to suggest he wasn't sure how to communicate through the Ring doorbell. "I've never used one of these," he says.

A woman replies: "Yeah, go ahead! What can I help you with, Sir?"

"Er, you Zionist pigs are f***ing disgusting," he snarls.

Newsweek reached out by email to Bexley Police Chief Gary Lewis on Monday, who confirmed his officers were investigating. He emailed an update later the same day to reveal a suspect had subsequently been identified and arrested.

He attached a police statement, which read: "On October 15, 2023, The Bexley Police Department was made aware of incidents at two Bexley homes, involving the same individual making antisemitic remarks.

"After following up on leads, an individual was identified. On October 16, 2023, officers arrested Jacob Thomas Reidy at his home and charged him with two counts of Criminal Trespass. Mr. Reidy was taken into custody without incident and transported to the Franklin County jail."

Officers "encourage residents to report suspicious activity," the statement added.

Reidy is 39, according to reports.

Even before the latest bloodshed across Israel and Gaza, hate crimes involving victims identified as Jewish soared in 2022, according to an annual report released by the FBI on Monday. The number of reported single-bias, anti-Jewish hate crimes jumped from 817 in 2021 to 1,122 in 2022, the agency said.

The Anti-Defamation League, an organization set up to fight antisemitism, said it was the highest number recorded in almost three decades. CEO Jonathan Greenblatt told Newsweek: "At a time when the Jewish community is already reeling in the wake of a terrorist attack that constituted the deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust, the reality of this data is incredibly sobering."