Bloomfield Mayor Michael Venezia announced Wednesday that the suspect in the firebombing of the Ner Tamid synagogue has been taken into custody by the FBI and Bloomfield Police Department.
“I’m proud to announce that the suspect in the Temple Ner Tamid firebombing is in the custody of the FBI and Bloomfield Police Department. More information to follow,” Mayor Venezia wrote in a Facebook post.
The man, identified as 26-year-old Nicholas Malindretos of Clifton, NJ, was seen on surveillance footage wearing a ski mask and throwing a Molotov cocktail at the synagogue on Sunday morning. The explosion he expected never occurred, and the synagogue wasn’t damaged.
Malindretos has been charged with one count of attempted use of fire to damage and destroy a building used in interstate commerce.