May 26, 2025 – Brooklyn, NY – A disturbing cocktail of rage, conspiracy, and firebombs has landed a Colorado-born man in the crosshairs of federal prosecutors after he allegedly attempted to torch a U.S. Embassy office in Tel Aviv and issued chilling threats against former President Donald Trump and tech mogul Elon Musk.
Joseph Neumeyer, 28, a dual U.S.-German citizen, now faces up to 20 years in prison after being charged with using fire or explosives to destroy U.S. property abroad. Prosecutors revealed the details Sunday, describing Neumeyer’s attempted attack as the culmination of an online spiral into violent extremism.
According to the unsealed criminal complaint, Neumeyer posted a barrage of unhinged threats on Facebook, declaring war on the U.S. and its citizens before arriving at the gates of the U.S. Embassy’s Tel Aviv branch on May 19 carrying a backpack loaded with three Molotov cocktails.
“Join me as I burn down the embassy in Tel Aviv. Death to America. Death to Americans and f—k the West,” one of his posts read, federal agents allege.
Neumeyer’s attack was foiled at the last moment. When stopped by a security guard outside the staff entrance, he allegedly spit on the guard, shouted profanities, and tried to flee, dropping the explosive-laden backpack in the process.
Hours later, Israeli authorities tracked him to a nearby hotel, where he admitted to carrying the homemade weapons, vodka-filled bottles, stuffed with cloth, ready to ignite.
“This wasn’t just internet rage. This was an attempted act of terrorism,” said FBI Assistant Director in Charge Steven J. Jensen. “Neumeyer not only made threats against Americans and U.S. diplomatic missions, he allegedly tried to make good on those threats with deadly force.”
Digital Breadcrumbs of a Deranged Mind
Neumeyer’s digital footprint reads like a manifesto of chaos. Federal agents say his Facebook was a volatile stew of pro-Russian propaganda, anti-Ukraine screeds, and bizarre contradictions including calls for the fall of Western democracies and simultaneous praise for Israel’s Eurovision contestant.
One moment, he posted “From the River to the Sea,” a slogan linked to anti-Israel movements. The next, “Long live the Fourth Reich,” a phrase evocative of neo-Nazi ideology. He also threatened global figures, writing: “We are killing Trump and Musk now,” and demanded the former president resign under threat of death.
“His ideology wasn’t left, right, or even coherent,” said one federal source. “It was pure rage.”
The man’s descent into radicalism escalated quickly after leaving the U.S. in February. He traveled to Canada before arriving in Israel on April 23 less than a month before the failed attack.
From the Rocky Mountains to a Terror Plot Abroad
Born and raised in Colorado, Neumeyer had no prior criminal record but had become increasingly erratic online in recent months, according to investigators. His violent rhetoric and threats against high-profile figures triggered international concern, ultimately culminating in his arrest and deportation from Israel on Saturday.
Because he landed at JFK Airport upon return, the case is being handled in Brooklyn Federal Court, under the jurisdiction of the Eastern District of New York. There, Magistrate Judge Peggy Kuo ordered him held without bail.
Justice Department: “No Tolerance for Terror”
Attorney General Pamela Bondi didn’t mince words in a statement following Neumeyer’s arraignment:
“This defendant is charged with planning a devastating attack targeting our embassy in Israel, threatening death to Americans, and President Trump’s life. The Department will not tolerate such violence and will prosecute this defendant to the fullest extent of the law.”
Federal authorities say investigations are ongoing to determine whether Neumeyer acted entirely alone or if he had links to any extremist networks abroad.
For now, Joseph Neumeyer sits in a federal detention cell in Brooklyn, his alleged plan thwarted, his words now evidence, and his future hanging by a thread.
