PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — A Philadelphia man is facing federal charges after he made a number of threatening phone calls and used antisemitic and Islamophobic language, prosecutors said on Monday.
Yaniv Gola, 50, threatened to hurt, rape or kill the victims in the calls, according to U.S. Attorney Jacqueline Romero. The calls were made to eight different victims — one in August 2022 and the rest between June and November 2023, according to a four-page criminal complaint.
Gola used a voice-over-internet protocol (VoIP) service to mask his phone number so the victims did not know who was calling, authorities said.
Investigators did not go into detail about a possible motive or if Gola had any kind of relationship with the people he allegedly called and threatened.
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While there has been a sharp rise in antisemitic and Islamophobic incidents around the country since the war between Hamas and Israel began, only one of the alleged calls occurred after the conflict started.
Gola is charged with eight counts of interstate communication of threats. The maximum possible penalty would include 40 years in prison and a $2 million fine.