A native of Lacey Township, Jonathan Lipman, faces federal indictment charges in connection with hundreds of menacing emails dispatched to an array of local and state government representatives. The United States District Court for the Central District of California confirmed the charges on September 25.
Currently residing in Los Angeles, Lipman awaits his trial in federal detention, deemed a potential threat to the community based on court disclosures.
The allegations have their roots in a May 2022 event where Lipman allegedly uploaded menacing remarks on Lacey Township Police Department’s official Facebook page. This incident led the police to apply for an “extreme risk protective order,” consequently prohibiting Lipman from possessing any firearms.
Prosecutors contend that this act fostered a perception in Lipman of an infringement on his federal rights, prompting the barrage of hostile emails targeted at governmental figures.
From early February 2023, the accused reportedly began dispatching disturbing emails to multiple officials, such as Lacey Municipal Judge Benjamin Mabie, Ocean County Superior Court Judge Kimarie Rahill, and Bruce Padula, the attorney for Lacey Township Board of Education. These emails, as per court records, vividly described Lipman’s desires for these officials to suffer harrowing demises.
In a particularly alarming email to Judge Rahill, Lipman attached an image, seemingly showcasing a lever-action shotgun, captioned “Is a photo illegal?” accompanied solely by a mischievous emoji.
In one day alone, he reportedly transmitted 96 emails to various authorities. These emails often bore his signature or had clear indications of his identity.
Upon a police visit to Lipman’s home in Los Angeles on July 13, 2023, he openly expressed his intent to persist in sending these emails. By less than a fortnight, Judge Rahill had reportedly received an additional 11 emails.
By September 22, Lipman had allegedly delivered approximately 400 emails, predominantly of a violent nature, solely to the officials outlined in the court’s documents. Some emails contained ominous messages, such as dire warnings to Rahill about her fate and equally disturbing messages to Oceanport Police Chief Michael Kelly.
Despite the authorities executing a search warrant at Lipman’s home on September 15 and confiscating various items, including an external hard drive, Lipman persisted with his email barrage. He remained undeterred even after being cautioned about the potential breach of federal law until his eventual arrest.