Shooters in deadly Jersey City attack had 'greater acts of mayhem' planned, authorities say
The couple responsible for what authorities have called a deadly anti-Semitic attack at a kosher market in Jersey City last month planned "greater acts of mayhem" on Jewish people and law enforcement, authorities said Monday.
The shooters searched Google for information on a Jewish community center in Bayonne, New Jersey, and left behind a note referring to anti-cop remarks featured in a 1990 documentary called "The FBI's War on Black America," authorities said. Federal and state officials revealed the information about the Dec. 10 attack during a press conference in Newark.
One of the suspected shooters, David Anderson, wrote anti-Semitic posts on social media referring to Jewish people as "imposters who inhabit synagogues of Satan" and referenced "wicked Israelites who love darkness as cover for their wickedness," U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito said.
"This was nothing but a senseless, evil, cowardly act of anti-Semitism and hatred toward not just the Jewish community, but also law enforcement," Carpenito said.
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The violence in Jersey City came amid a rise in attacks on Orthodox Jews in Brooklyn and about three weeks before a Dec. 28 machete attack at a Hanukkah party in Rockland County, New York, that left five injured.
The attack in Jersey City left six people dead, including Anderson and his alleged accomplice, Francine Graham, and one Jersey City police officer, Detective Joseph Seals. Authorities also believe the shooters are behind the murder of Michael Rumberger, a 34-year-old Jersey City man who was found dead in his car on Dec. 7.
Carpenito said that authorities do not believe Anderson and Graham had any co-conspirators, but the investigation continues. Carpenito also said there is no evidence suggesting Anderson and Graham attacked the yeshiva that is two doors down from the market. Jersey City Mayor Steve Fulop has said he believes evidence suggests the yeshiva was a planned target.
Anderson and Graham planned the attack for months and cased the market days before, authorities said today. In addition to the bomb that was found in the truck the two used to drive to the market, there was enough material to make a second bomb, they said.
The bomb could have injured or killed people as far as five football fields away, according to authorities.
A note inside the van about the anti-FBI documentary references a moment in the film when Fred Hampton, a Black Panthers leader, rails against "avaricious, greedy businessmen" and "fascist, pig cops," authorities said.
Follow reporter Terrence T. McDonald on Twitter: @terrencemcd
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This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Jersey City shooting: Shooters had plans for other 'mayhem'
