Faith-Based Daily Awareness Post 24 October 2024

These updates are shared to help raise the situational awareness of Faith-Based organizations to best defend against and mitigate the impacts from all-hazards threats including physical security, cybersecurity, and natural disasters.

Florida priest hospitalized after stabbing attack; suspect in custody

Episcopal News Service reports:

The rector of an Episcopal church in St. Augustine, Florida, was the victim of a stabbing attack Oct. 23 that has left him hospitalized, the Diocese of Florida said in a written statement on the attack.

The Rev. Matt Marino, rector of Trinity Episcopal Church, was having coffee in the city’s downtown neighborhood when “a random assailant” stabbed him, the diocese said. There was no initial indication of a possible motive behind the attack.

Marino was taken to a hospital, where he was reported to be in stable condition and awake. A suspect has been arrested, the diocese said.

The stabbing occurred around 8 a.m., according to WJXT-TV, which identified the suspect as a 22-year-old woman.

Related Articles:

• Augustine priest recovering after random stabbing attack while having coffee
• Florida priest stabbed in random attack while having coffee

Analyst Comments:

The attack on a Florida priest is an example of the threat of edged weapons and the vulnerability of faith community members when they can be identified in public.

There are other examples of edged weapon attacks against houses of worship and against identifiable members outside of houses of worship.

• Sydney church stabbing: Attack on Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel a ‘terrorist act,’ police say (Apr 2024)
• Man charged with murder in death of Detroit synagogue leader Samantha Woll (Oct 2023)
• Boston rabbi stabbed outside synagogue, suspect in custody (Jul 2021)
• 5 Stabbed at Rabbi’s Home in NY; Suspect Charged: Police (Dec 2019)

Other edged weapon attacks:

• Knife attack in German festival kills 3, police search for attacker (Aug 2024)
• Police fatally shoot a man armed with knives in a western German city (Aug 2024)
• 4 dead, including teen killed protecting her sister, in Illinois stabbing spree (Mar 2024)
• 4 people fatally stabbed, 2 officers injured in NYC knife attack: Police (Dec 2023)
• Advocate stabbed to death in New York City in ‘unthinkable’ attack (Oct 2023)
• UK: (name omitted): Terrorist who murdered three in ‘brutal’ Reading attack gets whole life sentence (Jun 2020)

Edged weapons continue to be a method available to terrorists. The Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) | JCAT First Responder’s Toolbox issued Terrorist Messaging Urges Use of Edged-Weapons. While active shooters remain an extreme threat against the faith community, other threats, such as edged weapons, should be considered.

Also, individuals should consider using extra caution when in public. There are many recent examples of students being attacked when they were identified as being Jewish. For example, NBC News reports  Five Jewish college students report being assaulted in last month. 

The following resources may help improve personal security:

• UK’s National Protective Security Authority: Personal Safety and Security for High-Risk Individuals (npsa.gov.uk) website
• Personal Security Considerations Action Guide | CISA website
• Personal Security Considerations Action Guide: Critical Infrastructure Workers (cisa.gov)
• CISA’s Conflict Prevention website can benefit anyone that deals with the public.

Weekly Security Sprint EP 86. Election security, arrests, and exercises

The Gate 15 Security Sprint is a weekly rundown of the week’s notable all-hazards security news, risks and threats and some of the key focus areas for organizations to consider behind the headlines. Gate 15 team members discuss physical security, cybersecurity, natural hazards, health threats and other issues across our environment.

In this week’s Security Sprint, Dave and Andy covered the following topics:

• Election 2024
• DOJ: Two Sudanese Nationals Indicted for Alleged Role in Anonymous Sudan Cyberattacks on Hospitals, Government Facilities, and Other Critical Infrastructure in Los Angeles and Around the World
• USGS: (Some) Assembly Required. How to sign your organization up for the Great ShakeOut. 

The above Gate 15 Weekly Security Sprint website also provides links to many security-related items of interest.

Information on other Gate 15 podcasts can be found at Podcasts (gate15.global).