Aventura, FL -A South Florida man who was planning a Passover terror attack on a Miami area synagogue is in FBI custody after federal agents who posed as terrorists set up a sting operation to stop the planned bloodshed.
According to Florida’s 7News an unidentified man had planned to throw an explosive device over the wall encircling the Aventura Turnberry Jewish Center on Friday night, the last night of Passover.
Those familiar with the case believe that the suspect may have converted to Islam.
Sources said that the Conservative synagogue was never in actual danger because the suspect was apprehended before he was able to carry out the planned attack.
Although the FBI has refused to comment on the incident, sources have said that the suspect will be in federal court early this week, possibly as early as tomorrow.
“It’s a very scary world and you know what? I don’t think that anybody is safe anywhere,” Aventura resident Kim Tepper said.
The synagogue, located on NE 30th Avenue in Aventura, is also home to a religious school and a summer camp for children.
A man who may have converted to Islam planned to throw an explosive device into a prominent Florida synagogue on Friday, authorities said, but the FBI reportedly caught him before he could carry out the alleged plot.
James Medina was accused of trying to blow up the Aventura Turnberry Jewish Center during Passover services, The Miami Herald reported. Officials portrayed Medina as being anti-Semitic, The Herald said.
FBI agents found out about the threat and used a confidential source to set up a sting and catch Medina, WSVN reported. The center was crowded on the second-to-last day of Passover when Medina allegedly planned to hurl some type of explosive over a synagogue wall, according to WSVN.
Medina is being held at the Federal Detention Center in Miami and is slated to appear in court Monday afternoon to be charged with a weapons of mass destruction offense.
“The leadership of our congregation has been briefed by law enforcement and Jewish community security officials about this situation,” the synagogue said in a statement on its Facebook page attributed to Rabbi Jonathan Berkun and Executive Director Elliot Karp. “They assured us that the synagogue and school were never at risk at any time during the investigation and arrest, and that there are no credible threats directed against us at the present time.”
Aventura is a 30-minute drive north of Miami.