A Delaware County man is facing felony charges after police say a dispute over a small tax issue turned into an antisemitic threat to burn down Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro’s mansion.

Richard John Franklin, 65, of Brookhaven Borough, had gone to the office of State Rep. Leanne Krueger seeking help with outstanding taxes, according to Pennsylvania State Police. While a staffer tried to assist him, police say Franklin used an antisemitic slur and communicated a threat of arson against the governor’s residence. The Philadelphia Inquirer, citing the criminal complaint, reported the dispute involved an unpaid tax bill totaling just $19.

The alleged threat was not treated as a routine outburst. Members of the Pennsylvania State Police Political Violence Threat Unit went to Franklin’s home, where police say he gave multiple inconsistent accounts, admitted using the ethnic slur, and claimed his comments about the governor’s mansion were meant in a “sympathetic and positive” way because Shapiro and his family survived a previous arson attack. Franklin was arrested without incident.

He was charged with terroristic threats, ethnic intimidation, threats and other improper influence in official and political matters, harassment, and disorderly conduct. NBC10 Philadelphia reported that bail was set at $100,000 and that Franklin is being held at Delaware County Prison. Online court records cited by local media did not list an attorney for him.

The case lands against a disturbing backdrop. Shapiro, one of the most prominent Jewish elected officials in the United States, already survived a violent attack at the governor’s residence. Cody A. Balmer later pleaded guilty to attempted murder, aggravated arson, 22 counts of arson, burglary and related offenses after prosecutors said he entered the residence with Molotov cocktails and a sledgehammer while Shapiro, his family, guests and state troopers were inside. He was sentenced to 25 to 50 years in prison.

Prosecutors said Balmer cited Israel’s military actions in Gaza as a motive and stated that if he had encountered Shapiro, he would have struck him with the hammer. That earlier attack made the new alleged threat more than ugly language. For law enforcement, it was another warning sign in a climate where antisemitism and political violence are increasingly colliding.

Franklin is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.