Teenager made 150 bomb threats against Jewish centres, court hears

An Israeli-American teenager has been indicted in a Tel Aviv court for making bomb threats to US Jewish community centres and hundreds of other institutions around the world.

The 18-year-old from the southern city of Ashkelon is accused of having made more than 150 bomb threats against Jewish community centres and day schools across the US and Canada, prompting fears of a rising wave of anti-Semitism.

The suspect was not named because he was a minor when some of the alleged offences were committed, but a separate American indictment identified him as Michael Ron David Kadar.

Investigators believe he began placing phone calls to Jewish institutions and other targets around the world three years ago, using sophisticated technology to disguise his voice to sound like a woman. He warned that bombs had been planted and in one case forced an emergency landing of a Delta Airlines flight, it is alleged.

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According to the indictment he made threats to 2,000 different institutions, including the Israeli embassy in Washington, the Israeli consulate in Miami, schools, malls, police stations, hospitals and airlines, aiming to cause public alarm. The crimes cited include extortion, causing public panic, hacking computers to commit a crime, and violations of money-laundering laws.

‘Unift to stand trial’

His parents have apologised for his actions but say their son is unfit to stand trial. Shira Nir, the suspect's lawyer, said his client suffered from autism and had a brain tumour. "It is unthinkable that a young man who is right in his mind with these mental skills would consider doing a fraction of what my client is charged with. If found guilty it is our duty as a society to provide him with the treatment he needs," he said.

The dual national was arrested last month after a joint investigation by Israeli and US authorities, including the FBI. Despite the close co-operation in the investigation, Israel said it would refuse an extradition request, saying the hacker had committed crimes in 10 different countries, but would be prosecuted in Israel.

He also allegedly targeted Ernesto Lopez, a Republican senator of Delaware, for criticising the bomb threats, threatening to fine him every 72 hours in Bitcoin, a digital currency. Kadar is also accused of having bought drugs online and sent them in envelopes to the home of the senator in an attempt to frame him.

The suspect also allegedly sold his bomb threat services and was found to have close to €500,000 worth of Bitcoin in his online account. He was also allegedly in contact with an American school student over receiving payment to make a bomb threat to the student’s school to cause an evacuation on the day the student had an exam.