In response to both the celebration of Jewish holy days and the harrowing anniversary of the "October 7th terrorist attacks", the Minneapolis Police Department around synagogues stepped up patrols. During these increased efforts, police arrested 21-year-old Jaden LeBlanc for making terroristic threats against Temple Israel, MPD Chief Brian O'Hara announced, as per the City of Minneapolis.
The incident began when staff at Temple Israel reported receiving calls on September 11 that featured LeBlanc threatening to "shoot up" the temple, according to the City of Minneapolis. To preventively act on these threats, officers were dispatched to monitor the area, which led to the sighting of a suspect with a firearm on October 3. The individual managed to initially evade detainment.
Further investigation confirmed the armed individual was indeed LeBlanc, the same person behind the alarming phone calls to the temple. The breakthrough came as members of the Southside REACT team successfully located and detained LeBlanc on October 4, although a gun was not found at the time of arrest. He now faces terroristic threat charges and awaits the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office's decision on prosecution.
"Everyone in Minneapolis has the right to feel safe in their communities, and we will ensure our Jewish neighbors are protected as they celebrate the holy days," Chief O'Hara said, as stated by the City of Minneapolis. "We take all threats made against our religious institutions seriously, and will continue to hold the individuals accountable who threaten any of our city’s houses of worship."
The MPD has remained transparent throughout the investigation and subsequent arrest, assigning the case a GO# of 24-259907 for public reference.