Credit: Wikipedia / U.S. Department Of Justice

DIPLOMATIC TIMES STAFF

William Patrick Syring, 61, of Arlington, was convicted last Thursday  of threatening employees of the Arab American Institute (AAI), because of their race and national origin, the U.S. Department of Justice reported.  Syring was also convicted of  threatening AAI employees because of their efforts to encourage Arab Americans to participate in political and civic life in the United States, and transmitting threats to AAI employees in interstate commerce.  Syring was convicted on all 14 counts in the indictment.

“Threats aimed at individuals because of their race and national origin have no place in our society and violate federal civil rights laws. The Department of Justice will continue to hold criminals accountable who commit such acts of hate so that all individuals in this country can engage in civic life and political discourse.”

-Assistant Attorney General Eric Dreiband.

Evidence presented at trial established that from 2012 to 2017, Syring sent over 700 emails to AAI employees, culminating in five death threats in 2017. According to court documents, Syring previously pleaded guilty in 2008 to sending threatening emails to AAI employees. Evidence presented at trial showed that Syring used nearly identical language that he admitted were threats in 2008 as he did in 2017.

According to testimony in court, AAI employees were frightened of Syring, because he had sent them death threats in the past and continued to do so over a decade later.

Additionally, according to witness testimony, many AAI employees lived in fear that Syring would follow through his threats and physically harm them. They further testified to the toll it took on them personally and their families and loved ones.  Sentencing is set for Aug. 9. The maximum penalties for the convictions is 42 years of imprisonment. The case was investigated by the FBI Washington Field Office and is being prosecuted by Civil Rights Division Senior Legal Counsel Mark Blumberg and Trial Attorney Nick Reddick.

The institute’s ordeal with Syring began in 2006, during Israel’s war with the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah. Syring, at the time a long-serving State Department diplomat, saw Zogby interviewed on TV about the conflict and began sending him hate-filled emails and voicemails.

“Justice Prevailed!” –  Arab American Institute

“While we, of course, know that the danger of new threats will always be with us, needless to say, we are enormously relieved by these guilty verdicts and are deeply gratified by the tireless efforts made by the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division and the Federal Bureau of Investigation to defend our rights to engage in our advocacy work on behalf of our community and our country without fear of threats of hate-based threats of violence.”

-Dr. James J. Zogby,  President of Arab American Institute

Credit:  afcfp.org /  Photo by Diego M. Radzinschi/LEGAL TIMES.    /   Dr. James Zogby  President of the Arab American Institute.

“The indictment of the defendant cited his repeated use of lines like – “the only good Arab American is a dead Arab American” or “America cleansed of Arab Americans will be America free of terror” or “America will never be safe until America is cleansed of James Zogby…” or “Death to all Arab Americans” or “the Arab American Institute is a terrorist organization, ”  Zogby wrote in a statement after the verdict. 

 “This is not the first time we have faced threats of violence or actual violence. As I testified in court, I received my first death threat in 1970; my office was fire-bombed in 1980; my friend and colleague, Alex Odeh, was murdered at his office in 1985; and two other individuals were convicted of death threats against me and sentenced to terms in prison in the years since the horrific terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.”

-Zogby said in a statement.