The father of a suspect accused of setting a synagogue in Mississippi on fire turned him in after his son laughed as he confessed to him, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
Stephen Pittman, 19, has been charged federally for maliciously damaging or destroying a building by fire or explosive for the arson over the weekend at Beth Israel Congregation in Jackson,” Fox News reported Tuesday. The historic 165-year-old synagogue was bombed by the Klu Klux Klan in the 1960s.
Pittman allegedly admitted to lighting a fire on the inside of the building, calling it a “synagogue of Satan,” the report states, citing the FBI affidavit. The FBI said Pittman’s father contacted them after he saw burns on his son’s ankles, hands, and face and after he allegedly heard his son confess to setting the fire.
“Pittman laughed as he told his father what he did and said he finally got them,” the FBI said in the affidavit, according to WLBT-TV.
Pittman appeared for the first time in U.S. District Court on Monday over video from a hospital bed, according to the report. Bandages could be seen on both of his hands in the video.
Prosecutors said he faces five to 20 years in prison if he is convicted. Pittman said “Jesus Christ is Lord” when the judge told him his rights.
The fire occurred after 3:00 a.m. on Saturday, according to the report. No congregants or first responders were injured in the blaze, but the fire caused extensive damage to the synagogue’s administrative offices and library.
The congregation released security footage showing a person wearing a mask and hood pouring liquid from a gas can on the floor and couch in the synagogue’s lobby.
CCTV footage showed the fire was started by a hooded individual who can be seen walking in the interior of the building pouring contents from what appeared to be a gas container, as seen in this photograph. (justice.gov)
“Investigators said Pittman stopped at a gas station beforehand to buy gasoline and removed his vehicle’s license plate. He allegedly used an ax to break a window, poured fuel inside the synagogue and ignited it with a torch lighter,” according to the report.
Per the affidavit, Pittman allegedly texted a picture of the building to his father before the fire and wrote, “There’s a furnace in the back.” His father replied by telling him to come home, to which Pittman allegedly replied that he was “due for a homerun,” and added, “I did my research.”
Investigators later found a burned cellphone at the scene that they believe belonged to Pittman, and seized a hand torch discovered by a congregant.
Two Torahs in the library were destroyed and five scrolls inside the sanctuary are being assessed for smoke damage. Another Torah that survived the Holocaust and was stored behind protective glass was not damaged in the fire, according to the congregation.
“This news puts a face and name to this tragedy, but does not change our resolve to proudly — even defiantly — continue Jewish life in Jackson in the face of hatred,” Beth Israel Congregation said in a statement.
Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a statement that she has instructed prosecutors to seek “severe penalties.”
“This disgusting act of anti-Semitic violence has no place in our country, and unlike the prior administration, this Department of Justice will not let anti-Semitism fester and flourish,” Bondi said.
