Texas Man Indicted on Hate Crime Charges for Anti-Muslim Threats against NYC Mayoral Frontrunner
The man has been indicted for a string of violent, anti-Muslim threats against Mamdani, the frontrunner in the city’s 2025 mayoral race, the Queens District Attorney's Office announced Thursday.
According to ABC News' report, Jeremy Fistel, 44, was arrested earlier this month in Plano, Texas, and pleaded not guilty to a 22-count indictment that includes "terroristic threat" as a hate crime.
Prosecutors say Fistel left a series of voicemails and online messages in June and July, telling Mamdani to “go back to Uganda before someone shoots you in the head,” to “watch your back every second,” and that he and his family “deserve to die.”
“Let me be very clear – we take threats of violence against any office holder extremely seriously – and there is no room for hate or bigotry in our political discourse,” Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said in a statement on Monday.
The threats prompted an NYPD security detail for Mamdani, who is challenging Mayor Eric Adams.
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“We are grateful to District Attorney Katz’s office for treating this matter with the seriousness it deserves,” Mamdani’s campaign said, calling the threats part of “a broader climate of hate that has no place in our city.”
Source: Anadolu Agency
