In brief
Jeremy Wayne Shoemaker of Needham, Alabama, faces federal charges for allegedly making threatening communications to several religious leaders, including rabbis and an imam. His disturbing messages included explicit threats against their lives. Following his arrest on related state charges, authorities discovered weapons and incriminating documents in his home. Reports suggest Shoemaker struggles with mental health issues and has resisted medication.
MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Federal prosecutors have charged Jeremy Wayne Shoemaker, a resident of Needham, Alabama, with making a series of threatening communications towards multiple religious leaders including rabbis in Alabama and Louisiana, an imam in Georgia, and a church in North Carolina. This alarming series of threats included statements such as, 'I want you to die.' Shoemaker has been arrested and charged with Interstate Communications Threats, along with related state charges for resisting arrest and possession of a firearm as someone prohibited from having a handgun.According to an affidavit from an FBI agent, Shoemaker began his threatening calls directed at a rabbi in Mountain Brook, Alabama, eventually leading to a broader investigation that uncovered a pattern of intimidation against several other religious leaders. Following his arrest, law enforcement officials found various weapons, a significant amount of ammunition, and a suitcase containing records with names, addresses, and contact details of various religious figures.Court documents reveal that Shoemaker's ability to discern right from wrong may be impaired, as he has been diagnosed with a mental illness. His grandmother relayed to investigators that he has chosen not to adhere to medication prescribed for his condition. The name of the illness remains redacted in publicly available court documents.In one of his threatening calls, Shoemaker reportedly told a rabbi, 'I continue to push the Muslimeens to kill you Rabbis.' He asserted that he would not cease these actions as he perceived them as a form of counter-terrorism against what he believes to be existential threats to the West.Needham is a small town located near the Alabama-Mississippi border, about 10 miles from the point of arrest. Shoemaker is currently held in the Choctaw County Jail. His arrest was coordinated by the Clarke County Sheriff's Office, which indicated that federal and local law enforcement officials were alerted to credible threats against multiple synagogues across Alabama and nearby states.
