The Extremism Roundup

Hate Crime

Cincinnati FBI Field Office - Eric Clajus 

FBI Arrests Man Accused of Threatening to Kill Thousands in Cincinnati

• On August 1, 2025, FBI agents arrested Scott Michael Hanna, a 30-year-old Dayton, Ohio, resident, for allegedly posting threats on X to organize mobs to kill 30,000 Black people in Cincinnati by August 3. He was charged with making interstate communications with a threat to injure, which carries a potential five-year prison sentence.

• Hanna’s X post, reported by Cincinnati Police to the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force, stated he was “organizing mobs to kill all the apes in Cincinnati” to “cleanse the city of blacks,” referencing a recent downtown brawl and criticizing Governor Mike DeWine and the Ohio State Highway Patrol for inaction. Read More

South Carolina Man Arrested for Alleged Hate Crime Shooting

• Jonathan Felkel, 33, was arrested in Richland County, S.C., for shooting at a Black neighbor jogging in the Spring Valley neighborhood, marking the first arrest under the county’s new hate intimidation ordinance, which carries a misdemeanor penalty of up to $500 or 30 days in jail.
• Felkel allegedly fired a shot from a dark-colored BMW at the victim, who was not hit but was “scared to death,” and made racially derogatory remarks as captured on security footage.
• Felkel faces a $1 million bond for assault and weapons charges, with an additional $1,100 bond for the hate intimidation charge. Read More

School Threats

Benjamin Dewees, 28 - Frederick County Sheriff’s Office via Fox Baltimore screenshot

Maryland Man Arrested for Threatening Kids at Summer Camp

• On July 29, 2025, Benjamin Dewees, a 28-year-old from Emmitsburg, Md., allegedly approached the playground of Emmitsburg Elementary School, where a children’s summer camp was held, and made threats of mass violence, including stating he would kill students and adults, prompting an immediate lockdown of the school.

• Witnesses reported Dewees cursing at approximately 17 children and two adults, claiming to be a Navy SEAL.

• Dewees faces charges including threat of mass violence, two counts of second-degree assault, disturbing the peace, disorderly conduct, and attempting to disturb school operations. He is currently held without bond. Read More

Foreign Influence Operations

Photo illustration by Jonathan Raa/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Chinese State-Sponsored Hackers Exploited Vulnerabilities in Microsoft SharePoint

• Chinese state-sponsored hackers exploited vulnerabilities in Microsoft’s SharePoint software, breaching systems of hundreds of companies and government agencies, including the National Nuclear Security Administration and the Department of Homeland Security, with attacks detected as early as July 7, 2025.

• Microsoft has used China-based engineers to maintain SharePoint for years, a practice not disclosed in its hack announcement, raising concerns about potential security risks due to Chinese laws allowing government access to data.

• At least four to five U.S. federal agencies were compromised, with the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) reporting no evidence of data exfiltration at DHS, though the full scope of the breach is still under investigation. Read More

QUOTABLE
“In Europe, charters of liberty have been granted by power. America has set the example … of charters of power granted by liberty. This revolution in the practice of the world, may, with an honest praise, be pronounced the most triumphant epoch of its history, and the most consoling presage of its happiness.”

-- James Madison

NOTE TO OUR READERS: We have pulled out the salient points of the articles in this newsletter to keep you informed and focused on the most relevant, important and timely news in national security and extremism. While our national security experts stand behind the summary bullets and deem them trustworthy, Clarion Project does not endorse all the views expressed in the articles linked.