Arrest in Mississippi synagouge firebombing

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Congregants and leaders vowed to rebuild a historic Mississippi synagogue that was heavily damaged by fire and an individual was taken into custody for what authorities said Sunday was an act of arson.

The fire ripped through the Beth Israel Congregation in Jackson shortly after 3 a.m. on Saturday, authorities said. No congregants were injured in the blaze.

Photos showed the charred remains of an administrative office and synagogue library, where several Torahs were destroyed or damaged.

Jackson Mayor John Horhn confirmed that a person was taken into custody following an investigation that also included the FBI and the Joint Terrorism Task Force.

“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 in a statement.

He did not provide the name of the suspect or the charges that the person is facing. A spokesperson for the Jackson FBI said they are “working with law enforcement partners on this investigation.”

The 160-year-old synagogue, the largest in Mississippi and the only one in Jackson, was the site of a Ku Klux Klan bombing in 1967 — a response to the congregation’s role in civil rights activities, according to the Institute of Southern Jewish Life, which also houses its office in the building. It has bee

“That history reminds us that attacks on houses of worship, whatever their cause, strike at the heart of our shared moral life,” said CJ Rhodes, a prominent Black Baptist pastor in Jackson in a Facebook post.

“This wasn’t random vandalism — it was a deliberate, targeted attack on the Jewish community,” Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO of The Anti-Defamation League, said in a statement.

The congregation is still assessing the damage and received outreach from other houses of worship, said Michele Schipper, CEO of the Institute of Southern Jewish Life and past president of the congregation. The synagogue will continue its regular worship programs and services for Shabbat, the weekly Jewish Sabbath, likely at one of the local churches that reached out.

“We are a resilient people,” said Beth Israel Congregation President Zach Shemper in a statement. “With support from our community, we will rebuild.”

One Torah that survived the Holocaust was behind glass not damaged in the fire, Schipper said. Five Torahs inside the sanctuary are being assessed for smoke damage. Two Torahs inside the library, where the most severe damage was done, were destroyed, according to a synagogue representative.

The floors, walls and ceiling of the sanctuary were covered in soot, and the synagogue will have to replace upholstery and carpeting.

“A lot of times we hear things happening throughout the country in other parts, and we feel like this wouldn’t happen in our part,” said chief fire investigator Charles Felton “A lot of people are in disbelief that this would happen here in Jackson, Mississippi.”

The man suspected of setting fire to Mississippi’s largest synagogue allegedly confessed his crimes to law enforcement and referred to the building in northeast Jackson as the “synagogue of Satan,” according to a federal court document filed Monday.

Stephen Spencer Pittman, 19, of Madison, is facing federal charges for using fire to maliciously damage or destroy a building involved in interstate commerce, according to a probable cause affidavit in the U.S. Southern District of Mississippi.

The Beth Israel Congregation synagogue also houses the offices of the Institute for Southern Jewish Life, which provides school programs and traveling rabbinical services to Jewish congregations across the South.

The predawn fire Saturday reduced the historic synagogue’s library and administrative offices to charred ruins and left smoke damage throughout the building, the same one the Ku Klux Klan bombed in 1967 for its rabbi’s support of civil rights.

In a striking parallel, Pittman is alleged to have set fire to the same part of the octagonal building that burned in the 1967 attack – a wing facing a parking lot exit on Old Canton Road.

Pittman was scheduled to make an initial court appearance Monday afternoon. Federal investigators quickly identified Pittman as a person of interest, according to the affidavit, which includes text messages he allegedly sent to his father in the course of setting the fire.

The father pleaded for his son to return home, the affidavit says, but Pittman “replied back by saying he was due for a homerun and ‘I did my research.’”

Pittman is alleged to have confessed to his father, who later contacted the FBI and provided GPS data showing Pittman was at the synagogue early Saturday morning.

The son “laughed as he told his father what he did and said he finally got them,” says the affidavit from Nicholas Amiano, an FBI agent in the Jackson division.

Amiano said Pittman purchased gasoline from Mac’s Gas in Ridgeland, where he also removed the license plate from his truck. Then he drove to the synagogue, used an ax to break through one of the windows, went inside, poured gasoline and lit it on fire with a torch lighter.

Once at Beth Israel, Pittman also texted his father a photo of the back of the synagogue writing “there’s a furnace in the back,” “Btw my plate is off,” “Hoodie is on” and “and they have the best cameras.”

Investigators recovered a burnt cell phone believed to be Pittman’s and a hand torch found at the synagogue by a member of the congregation, the affidavit says.

Security camera video obtained by Mississippi Today shows a hooded person splashing liquid inside the lobby of the synagogue, spraying his legs in the process. A screengrab of the security footage is included in the FBI affidavit.

Mayor John Horhn said Monday the suspect drove himself to a hospital after he was burned in the course of setting the fire. He added there is a possibility the suspect will be charged with a hate crime. The affidavit states that Pittman sustained burns on his ankles, hands and face.

“We thought that Mississippi was beyond that sort of thing,” Horhn said on Mississippi Today’s podcast.

By Monday, news of the arson had drawn an outpouring of local support for Beth Israel. The mayor, multiple city council members, religious institutions and elected officials condemned the attack, which has also caught the attention of top officials at the U.S. Department of Justice.

In a statement to Mississippi Today, Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann, a Republican who has long lived near the synagogue, condemned the attack.

“The burning of Beth Israel Synagogue was an act of religious hatred against a place meant to offer prayerful peace and comfort,” Hosemann said. “This was not only an attack on a house of worship, but also an offense against the religious freedom protected by our Constitution. Such acts threaten all of us, regardless of faith. The perpetrator should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”

News of the attack also reverberated internationally over the weekend. Harmeet Dhillon, the Justice Department’s assistant attorney general for civil rights, wrote on the social media site X that she was “personally involved and my team is in touch with the US Attorney’s office locally.”

Other officials who publicly condemned the attack include the Democratic leaders in Congress, Sen. Chuck Schumer and Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani.

Pittman was a multi-year honor roll student and varsity baseball player at St. Joseph Catholic School in Madison, according to previous local news reports.

After graduating from St. Joseph in 2024, Pittman played baseball at Coahoma Community College.

“I am blessed to announce I will be commuting to Coahoma Community College to play baseball,” Pittman posted on X in 2023. “Thank you God and everyone who has helped me along the way! Go tigers!”

Pittman posted regularly on his X account, often about baseball and Christianity. Many posts pair videos of him practicing his swing in a batting cage with a captioned Bible verse.

His most recent post, on Jan. 6, links to a webpage called One Purpose, which describes itself as a faith-based community for men focused on “​​Scripture-backed fitness. Brotherhood accountability. Life-expectancy maxxing.”

He was an outfielder and played in at least 10 games for Coahoma Community College, according to the Mississippi Association of Community Colleges Conference.

Before law enforcement officials revealed Pittman’s name Monday, Pittman’s name and photograph no longer appeared on the Coahoma Community College’s online roster. The community college did not immediately respond to a phone call requesting comment on Monday.

A gathering of religious leaders across Jackson planned for later this week has shifted its focus to uplifting Beth Israel in the wake of the attack. The citywide prayer service will be held at 6 p.m. Thursday at Thalia Mara Hall, according to a city press release.

Beth Israel has established a donation fund for rebuilding, with a link on the congregation’s website.