The “Offense Description” in a criminal complaint filed last week against James Gonzalo Medina in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida reads: “Attempted Use of a Weapon of Mass Destruction…against any person or property within the United States.” The alleged target? The Aventura Turnberry Jewish Center in Aventura, Florida.
A 17-page affidavit, released on Monday, details the case against Medina, who, if convicted, could face life in prison, according to The Miami Herald. According to the complaint, the FBI foiled Medina’s plot, thanks to an undercover operation by the South Florida Joint Terrorism Task Force during which an FBI agent provided Medina with a dummy bomb. Medina is currently being held in a federal prison and has a bond hearing set for Thursday.
The complaint provides us with the charges against Medina—not his defense, he’s yet to be tried—but it tells a scary story nonetheless. It’s worth reading in full if only to learn about the activities of a person who allegedly tried murder a group of Jews on Passover in Florida. It’s a horrifying prospect, one that feels present. Here are some of the complaint’s chilling details:
On the evening of March 27, an FBI Confidential Human Source (“CHS”) had a conversation with one of Medina’s associates, who said: “Medina” told me that he wanted to go blow up… I mean not blow but like shoot up a synagogue in Aventura… to shoot it up and then die while shooting it up, like be a martyr.” He had planned to use AK-47s. The FBI source recorded the conversation.
On April 1, the CHS and Medina met, drove around, and spoke about when a good time to plan the attack would be. The CHS suggested Yom Kippur and Medina agreed: “That’ll be a good day to go and bomb them.” Both had mistaken Yom Kippur for Passover.
Medina, 40, then decided, based on the suggestion of the FBI informant, that he would “print up something to make it looks like it’s ISIS here in America,” in order to provide a clue as to who was responsible for the attack. “MEDINA,” the complaint states, “felt the news of this attack conducted in this manner would go nationwide and inspire other Muslims to attack as well.”
Medina, the complaint states, converted to Islam four years ago, and in court said he also goes by James Muhammed. He explained to the FBI source, the affidavit states, “that if he would conduct an attack he would want to do it at a synagogue because the Jewish people are the ones causing the world’s wars and conflicts.”
MEDINA further explained that the “plot” that he and BH had discussed allowed them to “strike back to the Jews, by going to a synagogue and just spraying everybody … ‘ cause we’re Muslims you know what I mean? It’s a war man and it’s like it’s time to strike back here in America.”
Medina, the CHS, and another one of Medina’s associate then scoped out the Aventura synagogue, the affidavit states, and “developed an escape route to be used after the attack.”
The FBI source then proposed leaving “an unspecified object behind and leaving the scene,” the affidavit states, and Medina went for it. “Just pop that bitch and we out,” Medina allegedly said. Medina and the FBI source continued to plan the attack and conducted further surveillance of the synagogue.
MEDINA first wanted to place the bomb inside the synagogue building, and speculated whether he should leave it in a restroom, adding “I just, I just, I gotta plan it out.” The CHS cautioned that they should plant the bomb outside the building instead “while they’re inside the service” and then drive away. This was a reference to timing the attack while the congregation was inside the building. MEDINA wanted to witness the explosion, hearing and feeling the blast from the nearby car: “I wanna see that shit go off … For real. I wanna hear that shit. I’ll have the windows down … “
Finally, according to the report, Medina met with an undercover FBI employee (“UCE”)—the CHS had told Medina that the UCE could provide him with “explosive expertise and access”—who repeatedly asked Medina about his motivations, and the details of the attack. Medina, in exchange, repeatedly confirmed his readiness. he later provided the UCE with a leaflet with the words “ISIS in America” on it.
They decided on April 29, 2016—Passover—as the day of the attack, the complaint states. On that day
MEDINA took possession of what was described as, and what he believed to be, an explosive device. Unbeknownst to MEDINA, the device was inert and posed no danger to the public. At this time, MEDINA was briefed on the operation of the device and given instructions regarding its use. Thereafter, MEDINA and the UCE drove toward the target location in Aventura, Florida. After MEDINA exited the vehicle with what he believed to be an explosive device in hand, with the intention of placing and detonating it near the Jewish center/synagogue, he was taken into custody as he approached the target location.
Prior to his meeting with the UCE, MEDINA made three videos on the CHS’ cellular telephone. In one, he stated: “I am a Muslim and I don’t like what is going on in this world. I’m going to handle business here in America. Aventura, watch your back. ISIS is in the house.” In another, he stated: “Today is gonna be a day where Muslims attack America. I’m going to set a bomb in Aventura.” In the third, he said his goodbyes to his family.
This is not Medina’s first run-in with authorities, reported CBS Miami, as he was previously “arrested [in 2012] in Coral Springs, accused of stalking by sending texts threatening gun and bomb violence against a family.”
The Aventura Turnberry Jewish Center has since released a statement stating that they were “assured…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.”
Jonathan Zalman is a writer and teacher based in Brooklyn.
