In the lead-up to the Chabad of Thousand Oaks’ annual Hannukah celebration, a Facebook commenter left a series of terrifying messages saying that people would unleash machine guns at the community gathering, according to federal court records.
Days later in Australia, two gunmen opened fire at a Hannukah event held by the Chabad of Bondi, killing 15 people in the deadliest antisemitic attack in the nation’s history.
In Ventura County, local authorities took the online threat very seriously, said Rabbi Chaim Bryski, who leads the Chabad of Thousand Oaks.
They identified the commenter as 61-year-old Glenn Benson, who lives in the rural village of Onarga, Ill., according to the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department.
On Dec. 17, the Chabad of Thousand Oak’s 25th annual Hanukkah Family Festival took place without incident, and on Jan. 7, a federal grand jury indicted Benson with one felony count of interstate communications with a threat to injure, according to federal court documents.
He was arrested by the FBI on Jan. 8 and pleaded not guilty the following day in Illinois’ Central District Court, according to federal court records and the Sheriff’s Department. A hearing to determine whether he remains in custody until his trial is set for Wednesday.
Bryski said he was grateful to Thousand Oaks Police Chief Jeremy Paris for his proactive efforts to increase security at the event and his steadfast dedication to ensure the man behind the threats faces consequences.
“It’s a reflection of local police departments taking something very seriously, and that sends a powerful message,” said Bryski.
Bryski said Paris called him on Dec. 11 to inform him that authorities had identified the suspect and that the FBI was watching him. At the time, Bryski didn’t feel too alarmed.
But three days later, the Bondi massacre took place, and those threatening comments took on a much more chilling tone.
“Waking up and seeing what happened in Sydney, that [threat] became real,” he said.
Among those killed in the attack was the brother of the co-director of the Chabad of Bakersfield and the son of a close friend of Bryski’s wife.
“The tragedy in Sydney hit very close to home,” said Bryski. “It’s a very close-knit community Chabad.”
Bryski said he considered calling off the local celebration and asked Sandy Sigal — chief executive of NewMark Merrill Cos., which owns the shopping mall where the event takes place — what he would like to do.
“He said, ‘Now that he is threatening us, I want to come double,’” said Bryski.
The gathering, which has been a staple in the Conejo Valley Jewish community for a quarter of a century, drew a larger-than-normal crowd in the aftermath of the Bondi bloodshed, and the symbolic lighting of the menorah became even more powerful.
Hanukkah celebrates the miracle when a small amount of oil burned for eight days in the rededicated Temple in Jerusalem, symbolizing how light, faith, and resilience will overcome darkness, violence and oppression.
“Our job, as Jewish people, is to add light,” Bryski told the crowd at the event, according to reporting from local news outlet the Acorn. “We should now be the ones doing the acts of goodness [the Bondi shooting victims] would want us to do, being their voices to promote goodness, kindness and light in the world.”
Although attendees were mourning, the event was joyous and featured traditional Hannukah treats of latkes, which are fried potato pancakes, and sufganiyot, which are jelly doughnuts. There was also hot cocoa, a juggling show and a choir singing.
“We Jews have withstood a lot of big things,” said Bryski, “resilience and responding with light is the way we fight.”
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