A Texas man was arrested in a Queens court on September 18 for allegedly making threats against New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani, Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said on Thursday.
According to Katz, Jeremy Fistel, 44, is suspected of making “terroristic threat[s]” against Mamdani in a series of “increasingly alarming” voice messages and emails to the state assemblymember.
Fistel faces up to 60 years in prison for making abusive statements about Mamdani, his family, and Muslims in phone conversations and emails, according to prosecutors.
Prosecutors read aloud the conversations and emails in court, which included several expletives and mentions of violence against Mamdani. The calls and emails were delivered to Mamdani’s official state Assembly channels beginning in June and ending in late July, according to prosecutors.
“The defendant told the assemblyman to go back to Uganda before someone shoots him in the head, to keep an eye on his house and family, to watch his back every second until he leaves America,” Katz indicated. “We take threats of violence against any office holder extremely seriously.”
Fistel is originally from Plano, Texas, but has a brother who lives in Queens, according to his defense attorney. His defense attorney stated that the messages were examples of free expression.
“No one argues that what he did was proper… It’s unpleasant. “But it’s free speech,” Fistel’s defense attorney stated.
Prosecutors said Mamdani’s staff reported the texts to law enforcement in June. Fistel was arrested in September in Texas and later extradited to Queens.
