Man extradited from Sweden in connection to 2019 fires at Jewish institutions in Boston suburbs

A 37-year-old man was extradited from Sweden to face charges connected to four fires set at Jewish institutions in Boston suburbs in 2019, officials announced Sunday.

Alexander Giannakakis, formerly of Quincy, was serving time in Sweden for possessing a firearm before the Swedish authorities granted the United States’ extradition request in December, the Office of U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts Joshua Levy announced. 

Giannakakis arrived in Boston on Feb. 2, where he will answer to federal grand jury indictments from 2019 including making false statements in a matter involving domestic terrorism; falsifying, concealing and covering up a material fact in a matter involving domestic terrorism; concealing records in a federal investigation; tampering with documents and objects; and tampering with an official proceeding. 

His brother suspected in four fires at Jewish institutions

His younger brother was a prime suspect in four fires set at Jewish-related institutions in May of 2019, the U.S. Attorney said. He was allegedly connected to two fires about a week apart at a Chabad Center in Arlington, one fire at a Chabad Center in Needham, and another at a Jewish-affiliated business in Chelsea.

By the time the younger brother was identified as a suspect in February of 2020, he was in a coma for months before his death that September. The U.S. Attorney did not say what caused the brother’s medical condition.

According to court documents, Giannakakis left the country for Sweden and brought his younger brother’s electronic devices and papers with him. Investigators questioned Giannakakis when he was back in the states in March of 2020, when he allegedly made false and misleading statements and concealed physical evidence that implicated his brother, who was still alive in a coma at the time. 

He then went back to Sweden, where he remained after his arrest by Swedish authorities in 2022. Back in the states, he faces a maximum penalty of 28 years in prison, six years of supervised release, and a fine of $500,000.