The 27-year-old white supremacist charged with a federal hate crime for allegedly plotting to bomb a Colorado synagogue had been known to law enforcement for years due to his frequent, neo-Nazi postings on Facebook, including a video of himself urinating on a California Chabad Center.
Police say a video recorded by Richard Holzer shows him urinating on the front door of what was then the Chabad of Thousand Oaks. The temple has since moved.
Rabbi Chaim Bryski says a Ventura County detective alerted him last year about Holzer after the detective found the video on Holzer’s social media.
“I’m so grateful to Hashem for his kindness in protecting us every day,” Rabbi Bryski told COLlive. “Without our even knowing about it, Hashem protected us and the Yidden in Colorado from tragedy. May we only share good news!”
Federal authorities arrested Richard Holzer on Friday after he met with undercover FBI agents believing he would obtain explosives to bomb the Temple Emanuel Synagogue in the southern Colorado city of Pueblo.
Rabbi Bryski says it’s chilling how his synagogue was once one of Holzer’s targets.
“That’s really hit home … [I’m] just so grateful that this is the opposite … [he was] caught before anything could happen,” he said.
The Ventura County Sheriff’s Department says they do not have any evidence any other sites were targeted by Holzer, who could face up to 20 years in prison if convicted.
