Investigators say the target was Palestinian activist Nerdeen Kiswani after a weekslong undercover operation.
NEWARK, NJ — Federal prosecutors charged a 26-year-old Hoboken man Friday after investigators said he assembled Molotov cocktails as part of a plan to attack the home of pro-Palestinian activist Nerdeen Kiswani in New York City.
The case drew immediate attention because prosecutors and New York police described it as a politically motivated attack stopped before it was carried out. Authorities said Alexander Heifler was arrested Thursday after a weekslong undercover operation. He now faces two federal counts tied to destructive devices, while investigators continue to sort through the planning, the intended timing of the attack and whether anyone else could face charges.
According to the criminal complaint, the investigation began to take shape on Feb. 10, when Heifler joined a video call that included an undercover law enforcement officer. After saying he had to be careful about what he was about to say, investigators said, he asked whether anyone had space to train with weapons for “self-defense,” then made clear he meant Molotov cocktails. The next day, prosecutors said, he met the undercover officer in person and talked about vandalizing the home of a person identified only as “Victim-1.” Investigators said Heifler claimed to have the address and spoke about carrying out the attack before leaving the country. In the complaint, agents said he laid out the plan in blunt terms, saying they could drive to the residence in mid-April with “no IDs, no phones” and get “in and out.”
Investigators said the planning grew more specific over the next several weeks. On March 4, according to the complaint, Heifler and the undercover officer drove to the victim’s residence to conduct surveillance using an address Heifler provided. Prosecutors said he told the officer he had already made a Molotov cocktail and had tested it for DNA with a pharmacy-bought kit. After traces of his DNA showed up, agents said, he concluded they would need gloves. The complaint says Heifler later discussed building about 12 Molotov cocktails and talked through where they should be thrown, including at the residence and at two cars parked outside. On March 23 and March 24, investigators said, Heifler used an encrypted messaging app to discuss making the devices that week and agreed to meet March 26 at his Hoboken residence. Authorities have not publicly said whether any other suspects were under investigation, and the complaint filed Friday charges only Heifler.
By Thursday, prosecutors said, the alleged plan had moved from talk to assembly. When the undercover officer arrived at Heifler’s home on March 26, the complaint says, Heifler was carrying a large bottle of Everclear and had other materials needed to make incendiary devices. Agents said the two then assembled eight Molotov cocktails. According to the filing, Heifler wet eight corks, placed one in each bottle and kept rags nearby, telling the undercover officer he would not insert the rags until just before the attack so the devices would work as intended. Prosecutors said he again stated that some of the bottles would be thrown at cars and some directly into the victim’s residence. After the assembly was complete, law enforcement officers executed a federal search warrant and recovered the eight devices. The FBI’s bomb technician squad conducted a preliminary analysis, according to the complaint, and found the liquid tested positive for ethanol, an ignition liquid used in improvised incendiary devices.
The woman identified publicly as the target, Kiswani, is a well-known organizer in New York’s pro-Palestinian protest movement and a co-founder of Within Our Lifetime. In interviews Friday, she said law enforcement officials told her late Thursday that a threat on her life had been disrupted. Kiswani, 31, has regularly led demonstrations against Israel and the war in Gaza, and she has long drawn sharp criticism from opponents of her activism. Those tensions form the wider backdrop to the case. New York police said the operation was handled by the Racially and Ethnically Motivated Extremism unit within the department’s counterterrorism bureau, suggesting investigators viewed the alleged plot through the lens of ideologically driven violence. Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said the case showed how intelligence work is supposed to function by detecting danger early and stopping violence before it reaches the street.
Officials also described the legal stakes in direct terms. The U.S. attorney’s office in New Jersey said Heifler was charged by complaint with one count of unlawful possession of destructive devices and one count of making destructive devices. Each charge carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a maximum fine of $10,000, though any sentence would depend on a conviction and a judge’s ruling. The complaint says Heifler did not apply for or receive approval from the secretary of the Treasury to make the devices. Prosecutors emphasized that the case remains an ongoing investigation and said there is no current threat to the community. Heifler was scheduled to make an initial appearance Friday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Stacey D. Adams in Newark federal court. Court records released with the complaint did not include a plea, and his attorney did not immediately return a request for comment in reporting published Friday.
Political leaders and the intended target responded with relief and alarm. New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani said no one should face violence for political beliefs or advocacy and said he was relieved Kiswani was safe. Kiswani said the alleged plot would not stop her activism. “I feel very blessed that they were able to thwart this,” she said in comments published Friday, while adding that threats remain a constant risk for people who speak publicly for Palestine. Even with the arrest, several questions remain unresolved in public records, including whether prosecutors will add charges, what additional digital or physical evidence investigators recovered and whether they believe Heifler acted entirely on his own. For now, the case stands as a federal complaint built around undercover meetings, encrypted messages, surveillance of a residence and eight bottles investigators say were ready to become weapons.
The case was at the charging stage Friday, with Heifler under arrest and federal investigators saying the immediate threat had been stopped. The next public milestone is expected to come in federal court as prosecutors decide whether to pursue an indictment or add charges.
Author note: Last updated 2026-03-27.