Combating Hate: Domestic Extremism & Terrorism

White Supremacist Sentenced in Oklahoma Synagogue Attack

A white supremacist has been sentenced to 39 years in prison by a federal judge in Oklahoma City for firebombing an area temple in 2004. Sean Michael Gillespie, 21, was convicted in April 2005 on three bombing charges for throwing a Molotov cocktail at Temple B’Nai Israel. The attack caused minor damage to a brick wall and a glass door. He was arrested in Russellville, Arkansas, two weeks after the attack.

Gillespie’s received an extended sentence on August 30, 2005, because he tried to send a letter to the temple after his conviction expressing hatred toward Jewish people. The letter, which was read in court, also described his desire to spark a racial holy war.

Gillespie, once a member of the neo-Nazi group Aryan Nations, gave a Nazi salute as the judge left the court.