Teens charged after FBI says plot targeting Houston synagogue, school foiled

By Bethany Blankley
The Center Square

Two female teenagers have been charged in connection to what authorities say was a plot to commit a terrorist attack against a Jewish synagogue and day school in Houston.

A multistate investigation involving the FBI in North Carolina and Texas resulted in the state’s oldest congregation going on lockdown Wednesday. Within 24 hours, two arrests were made in two states.

On Wednesday, Congregation Beth Israel and The Shlenker School on its property both were closed after the Houston Police Department notified them of a potential targeted attack, authorites said. The notification came from an FBI Charlotte Joint Terrorism Task Force, which began an investigation Tuesday night after receiving a tip from a North Carolina law enforcement agency.

The Reform Jewish congregation serves more than 1,500 households in the Houston area and is the oldest Jewish congregation in Texas.

“HPD Major Offenders Division was made aware of a threat directed towards certain Jewish institutions in our area,” police said in a statement. “With the assistance of FBI Houston and Alief ISD Police Department, a 16-year-old has been arrested and charged with conspiracy to commit capital murder. At this time there is no other known credible threat. No other information is available at this time.”

Authorities also arrested an 18-year-old woman in North Carolina, accused of conspiring to “kill as many Jews as possible.”

“A fast-moving, multistate FBI investigation led to the arrests of one adult and one juvenile accused of planning an attack at a Jewish Day School in Houston, Texas,” FBI Charlotte announced Thursday afternoon. “18-year-old Angelina Hicks is currently facing two state charges brought by the Davidson County Sheriff’s Office in Lexington, North Carolina. A juvenile was charged in Harris County, Texas.”

The task force investigation working with local law enforcement was “an exceptional example of when you see something concerning, you say something to law enforcement,” FBI Charlotte said. It also recognized FBI-Houston partners and the Jewish community in North Carolina, Texas, and nationwide, including the Jewish Federation for their assistance.

A joint FBI multistate investigation is ongoing, it said.

Authorities said the plan involved driving into the building to harm congregants and school children, similar to what occurred in Michigan last month.

In March, a Lebanese man drove into Temple Israel, also a reformed synagogue, in West Bloomfield Township near Detroit. None of the synagogue’s staff, teachers or 140 children in its early childhood center were injured. The driver was shot dead by police.

The Davidson County, North Carolina, Sheriff’s Office said its Criminal Investigation Division working with the FBI launched an investigation. Deputies went to Hicks’ home and found evidence “showing Hicks and co-conspirators were planning a mass casualty event at a synagogue in Houston. The planned attack was targeted at the Congregation Beth Israel.”

Hicks was arrested and charged with felony conspiracy to commit assault with a deadly weapon to kill or commit serious injury and felony conspiracy to commit murder. The judge set bond at $10 million.

The Jewish Federation of Greater Houston said on Wednesday that it had been in communication with law enforcement “related to information around potential threats to the [Beth Israel] campus.” The Shlenker School said closing its campus came “out of an abundance of caution and after speaking with authorities.” Both were reopened on Thursday.

The federation also said local law enforcement agencies were increasing patrols around Houston-area Jewish institutions. The federation also posted information about security, including a way for the public to report threats, incidents, and suspicious activity related to Jewish organizations, facilities or community members.

After the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas terrorist attack against Israel, Gov. Greg Abbott directed additional security measures statewide, especially around Jewish organizations and schools, and surged antiterrorism resources, The Center Square reported. Abbott and the legislature have also advanced several measures to combat antisemitism.

Within one year, the number of antisemitic attacks tracked by the Anti-Defamation League were the largest on record in the U.S. in 2024 of 9,354. They included harassment, vandalism and assault against Jewish- and Israeli-Americans or Jewish institutions and houses of worship, The Center Square reported.

Beth Israel is hosting a 30-minute gun safety training for its congregants on Sunday to promote “responsible gun ownership to reduce deaths, injuries, and trauma among children and teens.”