Mississippi Man Sentenced to Two Years in Prison for Cyberstalking and Antisemitic Harassment of Synagogues, Jewish-Owned Businesses

PHILADELPHIA - United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Donavon Parish, 29, of Hattiesburg, Mississippi, was sentenced today by United States District Court Judge Cynthia M. Rufe to 24 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, for cyberstalking and the antisemitic harassment of synagogues and Jewish-owned businesses.

According to a June 2023 indictment and superseding information filed this May, the defendant used a Voice Over Internet Protocol service to make a series of phone calls in April and May 2022 to synagogues and Jewish-owned businesses in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.

In these calls, the defendant spoke to individuals answering the telephone calls on behalf of their respective institutions, at which time he repeatedly referenced the genocide of approximately six million Jewish people during the Holocaust, stating, among other things, "Heil Hitler," "all Jews must die," "we will put you in work camps," "gas the Jews," and "Hitler should have finished the job."

In June of this year, Parish pleaded guilty to one count of cyberstalking and five counts of abuse and harassment using a telecommunications device. He also admitted to a special finding that he targeted his victims based on their actual and perceived religion.

"Donavon Parish's harassment and hateful antisemitic threats terrorized those he targeted - their sense of security abruptly shaken by fears of escalation and physical harm," said U.S. Attorney Romero. "People of all faiths and backgrounds deserve to feel safe in their communities. That's why my office and the FBI are committed to working these cases and bringing offenders like Parish to justice."

"No member of our community should live in fear, regardless of where they work, live, or worship," said Wayne A. Jacobs, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Philadelphia. "This sentence demonstrates the FBI and our partners at the U.S. Attorney's Office will not tolerate such repeated and vile threats that seek to disrupt our community's sense of safety and security, and we will bring the perpetrator to justice, no matter where they are."

The case was investigated by the FBI and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney J. Jeanette Kang of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania and Justin Sher with the Department of Justice's National Security Division (Counterterrorism Section), with assistance from DOJ's Civil Rights Division and the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Mississippi.