FBI: Arson suspect admitted to starting fire at Mississippi’s largest synagogue ‘due to building’s Jewish ties’

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By Chris Boyette, CNN

(CNN) — The suspect in an investigation of a fire at a prominent Jackson, Mississippi, synagogue confessed to starting the blaze because of its “Jewish ties,” according to a criminal complaint submitted by the FBI.

The suspect set fire to Beth Israel Congregation – the state’s largest Jewish house of worship – early Saturday, using gasoline as an accelerant, the complaint alleges.

In an interview with authorities on Saturday, the suspect identified as Stephen Spencer Pittman admitted to setting Beth Israel on fire calling it the “synagogue of Satan,” the complaint says.

According to the complaint, Pittman traveled from his home in Madison County, stopped at Mac’s Gas in Ridgeland, Mississippi, and then went to Beth Israel.

Authorities used data linked to Pittman’s phone via Life360, a location-sharing app that works through real-time GPS tracking, to determine his movements before he went to Beth Israel, according to the complaint.

Pittman also confessed to starting the fire in text messages to his father who alerted authorities, the complaint says.

The texts included a photo of the rear side of the synagogue with messages such as “There’s a furnace in the back,” “BTW my plate is off,” “Hoodie is on,” and, “And they have the best cameras.”

Later that the day, the father said he observed burns on his son’s ankles. Pittman admitted to lighting Beth Israel on fire and laughed while describing what he did, the complaint says.

An investigation by federal, state and local authorities is ongoing, amid a wave of antisemitic attacks in recent years.

This isn’t the first time the synagogue has burned. On September 18, 1967, Beth Israel’s temple was bombed by local Ku Klux Klan members, in part because of the congregation’s work in the civil rights movement, according to the synagogue’s website.

The suspect in Saturday’s fire was found at a local hospital with non-life-threatening burn injuries and, once medically cleared, will be released into the custody of the FBI, Felton said.

The fire began around 3 a.m. on Saturday morning, according to the Jackson Fire Department. The building was closed and all doors were locked when fire units arrived, the department said.

“The Jackson Fire Department responded quickly, contained the blaze and extinguished the fire,” Jackson Mayor John Horhn said in a statement.

Zach Shemper, president of Beth Israel, told CNN Monday he was informed by law enforcement the suspect in the arson attack posted antisemitic comments online.

“I was told that the perpetrator had been posting antisemitic comments on social media,” Shemper said, adding he had not seen the postings himself.

Shemper declined to say whether he believed the fire should be considered a hate crime.

Shemper said multiple churches have offered their space to Beth Israel as he expects it could take up to a year to rebuild.

Shemper recalled feeling both “sadness” and “anger” when he learned early Saturday his synagogue had been destroyed in a fire.

“When something like this happens so catastrophic, your mind goes 100 miles an hour in every direction you can think of,” Shemper said. “It was very much an influx of emotion and different thoughts all together. For someone to hurt the safe space that we hold as a congregation, it’s just so detrimental and catastrophic.”

The FBI is working with local law enforcement officials on the investigation, the agency’s field office in Jackson told CNN.

Hate crimes are “the highest priority of the FBI’s civil rights program because of the devastating impact they have on families and communities,” according to the agency.

Founded in 1860, Beth Israel Congregation built the first synagogue in the state of Mississippi and has grown in recent decades to be the state’s largest congregation, according to its website.

Investigators determined the fire started in the synagogue’s library, which sustained extensive damage, and the destruction continued toward the sanctuary, Felton said. He added there is smoke damage throughout the building, meaning the congregation will not be able to return for some time.

Several Torah scrolls were destroyed, according to the American Jewish Committee, which condemned the incident as a “hateful act.”

There is “significant” damage to the library and offices of the temple, and smoke and ash throughout the building, Michele Schipper, a past president of Beth Israel, said.

She added the congregation has had “tremendous support from the community.”

“We’re all devastated, but we are ready to rebuild, and with the support and outreach from our community, we will continue to be a vibrant Jewish community in Jackson, Mississippi,” Schipper said.

The Goldring/Woldenberg Institute of Southern Jewish Life, a nonprofit that provides services, education and programming to support, connect and celebrate Jewish life in the South, is based at Beth Israel, and many of its employees are members of the congregation.

“As Jackson’s only synagogue, Beth Israel is a beloved institution, and it is the fellowship of our neighbors and extended community that will see us through,” a statement from the institute said.

In the US, antisemitic incidents have been on the rise for several years, with Anti-Defamation League data showing the number for 2024 reached its highest level since the organization began tracking in 1979. According to the FBI, which enforces federal hate crime laws and collects statistics on acts of violence, threats against Jews in the US far exceed those against any other religious group.

“Acts of antisemitism, racism, and religious hatred are attacks on Jackson as a whole and will be treated as acts of terror against residents’ safety and freedom to worship,” Horhn said. “Targeting people because of their faith, race, ethnicity, or sexual orientation is morally wrong, un-American, and completely incompatible with the values of this city.”

Carole Zawatsky, CEO of The Tree of Life, the Pittsburgh synagogue that in 2018 saw the deadliest-ever attack on Jewish people in the US, called the attack on Beth Israel “horrific.”

“We mourn the destruction and the loss of security and safety that comes in the aftermath of such violence,” she said. “The intentional burning of a Jewish house of worship — especially one with a storied history — causes fear and raises the specter of antisemitism and hate.”

The fire was not just an attack on a building, said Jim Berk, CEO of the Simon Wiesenthal Center in Los Angeles.

“It was an assault on the heart of Jewish life in the South, and on a legacy shaped in partnership,” Berk said. “A house of worship should be a sanctuary, not a crime scene. When antisemitism strikes, it tears at the fabric of American life, wounding not just Jews but all who believe in freedom of faith. The solidarity shown across faiths and communities is a reminder that our strength lies in standing together against bigotry and violence.”

This story has been updated with additional information.

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CNN’s Nicquel Terry Ellis, Rafael Romo, Sarah Boxer and Cindy Von Quednow contributed to this report.