By JESSICA ANDERSON
Last week, I awoke to the news that a Portland resident, Domagoj Patkovic, aged 31, had been arrested by the FBI for making a series of false bomb threats against Jewish healthcare facilities in New York state. According to a federal indictment, his threats had triggered repeated emergency responses from local law enforcement as well as a partial evacuation. Beginning at least as early as May 2021, Patkovic and others made anonymous phone calls in which they made violent threats, including threats to detonate explosive devices, to Jewish hospitals and care centers in New York, among other targets throughout the United States. KGW-TV reported that he used antisemitic slurs on nearly all the calls.
The indictment stated Patkovic himself made threats in at least six separate calls to hospitals and on a call with New York local law enforcement who had responded to a 911 notification from one of the hospitals. The defendant also live-streamed the calls to others on Discord, an online social media service. No explosive devices were ultimately found in any of the locations. 
A few things stood out to me regarding this case. First, it was a reminder that law enforcement is always working behind the scenes, and they are committed to trying to stop these incredibly disruptive “swatting” activities and those who promote bias violence. I have every confidence that the FBI would have alerted us had Patkovic posed a threat to our community and that between the time he was identified and the time of his arrest, they were continually evaluating and addressing this issue. 
It’s also worth noting that for some reason, he targeted New York organizations and not any here in Portland (that I’m aware of). I don’t know why that is, but it highlights the importance of reporting and documenting any threatening or suspicious calls/emails, or contacts. These swatting calls were made in 2021, and it took 3 years for the case to result in an identification and arrest. We can’t know at the time incidents occur what relevance they might have to a future investigation – here or elsewhere. 
Lastly, the current charges against him are limited to those related to conspiring to and making threats related to explosives. They don’t include hate or bias charges but know that an evaluation for those will continue to take place. It’s often quicker and more efficient to get the person arrested with the basic charges of what they did and take the time to develop the bias charges while the person is in custody. Bias charges go to underlying intent can be much harder to demonstrate. His animus against Jews was clear in the threats and I’m confident it will be brought into the ongoing proceedings against him. 
Meanwhile, SCN’s national High Holiday training webinars continue. "Welcoming and Safety: The Role of Greeters, Ushers, and Volunteers," is set for Thursday, Aug. 29 at 11am PT. This webinar will focus on best practices and skills used by non-staff helpers at large events. T"Accessibility and Emergency Preparedness," will be held Thursday, Sept. 5 at 11am PT. This informational webinar will cover the myriad of topics that should be considered to ensure that your High Holiday events successfully include those with mobility or accessibility issues. The complete webinar schedule, along with registration links, can be found at securecommunitynetwork.org/high-holidays.
As always, if you have incidents to report or want to discuss a safety or security issue, please reach out to me at 872-273-9214 or janderson@securecommunitynetwork.org. Incident reporting can be made through the JFGP website at jewishportland.org/security.