On Sunday, at the federal courthouse in Brooklyn, a complaint was unsealed charging Joseph Neumeyer, a dual U.S. and German citizen, with attempting to destroy, by means of fire or explosive, the Branch Office of the United States Embassy located in Tel Aviv, Israel.
Neumeyer was deported by Israel to the Eastern District of New York on May 24, 2025 and made his initial court appearance this afternoon before United States Magistrate Judge Peggy Kuo.
Neumeyer was ordered detained pending trial.
United States Attorney General Pamela Bondi; Joseph Nocella, Jr., United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York; and Steven J. Jensen, Assistant Director in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Washington Field Office, announced the arrest and charge.
“This defendant is charged with planning a devastating attack targeting our embassy in Israel, threatening death to Americans, and President Trump’s life,” stated Attorney General Bondi. “The Department will not tolerate such violence and will prosecute this defendant to the fullest extent of the law.”
“As alleged, Neumeyer, armed with potentially lethal devices, sought to cause chaos and destruction at the United States Embassy in Tel Aviv,” stated United States Attorney Nocella. “His arrest and prosecution clearly show that my Office and the Department of Justice will not tolerate violence in our homeland or violence targeting U.S. interests abroad.”
U.S. Customs and Border Protection also provided logistical assistance for the defendant’s arrest at John F. Kennedy International Airport.
As alleged in the complaint, Neumeyer arrived in Israel in April 2025. On May 19, 2025, Neumeyer posted on his Facebook account “join me this afternoon in Tel Aviv we are burning down the US. embassy” and “join me as I burn down the embassy in Tel Aviv. Death to America. Death to Americans and f—k the west.”
That same day, Neumeyer arrived outside the Branch Office of the Embassy of the United States in Tel Aviv carrying a backpack. Neumeyer approached an Embassy guard and spat on the guard. The guard attempted to detain Neumeyer who uttered profanities before turning and fleeing, leaving his backpack behind.
Law enforcement recovered from Neumeyer’s backpack several bottles that had been turned into improvised incendiary devices, commonly known as “Molotov cocktails”. Authorities confirmed the presence of flammable fluid in the bottles. Law enforcement tracked Neumeyer to the hotel where he was staying, and he was placed under arrest.
Neumeyer’s social media accounts also contained threatening posts that, among other things, called for the assassination of President Donald J. Trump.
The charge in the complaint is an allegation and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty. If convicted, Neumeyer faces a mandatory minimum sentence of five years in prison and a maximum of 20 years in prison.
