Man sentenced for plans to execute mass shooting at East Lansing synagogue
20-year-old Sean Pietila of Pickford Township (U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Michigan)
FOX 2 (WJBK) - A 20-year-old man was sentenced to 12 months and one day in prison for violently threatening to kill Jewish people in June 2023, according to a news release.
The FBI found evidence that showed Sean Pietila of Pickford Township "had identified a Jewish synagogue in East Lansing and a specific date in March 2024" to execute a mass shooting, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Michigan announced.
Pietila pleaded guilty to sending several messages to an Instagram user outside the state, threatening to kill people while making references to "Adolf Hitler and antisemitic language," according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. Pietila talked about his "desire and plans to engage in a mass shooting in a manner similar to a specific past mass shooter."
The FBI discovered notes in Pietila's phone detailing his mass shooting and suicide plan, according to the release. He also made a wish list of weapons that he needed for the shooting.
In addition to his time in prison, Pietila was ordered to three years of supervised release after incarceration, and to pay $10,648 in restitution.
"There is absolutely no tolerance for threats of violence and intimidation in the state of Michigan and in our society. The FBI will vigorously pursue those who commit these actions," said Cheyvoryea Gibson, a Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in Michigan.