Brother of deceased suspect in alleged anti-Semitic arson spree pleads not guilty

 The brother of a man suspected in four arson attacks involving Jewish institutions in the Boston area in 2019 pleaded not guilty in federal court on Thursday to a charge of hindering the investigation.

Alexander Giannakakis, 37, a former resident of Quincy, Massachusetts, was working security at the U.S. Embassy in Stockholm, Sweden when he was arrested by Swedish authorities in 2022. He was extradited recently.

Giannakakis is due back in court on Feb. 22.

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Giannakakis' brother was hospitalized in a coma after being identified as a suspect in February 2020 and died the same year. Federal officials have not released his name.

Giannakakis was indicted by a federal grand jury in Boston in 2019 on charges of making false statements related to domestic terrorism; Falsifying any material fact in a domestic terrorism case; concealing records in federal investigations; Tampering with documents; and tampering with an official proceeding.

Giannakakis was convicted of illegally possessing firearms and other weapons in Sweden. He served his sentence in a Swedish prison, which ended in December. According to the US Attorney's Office, the Swedish government approved the US extradition request on December 21.

According to the indictment, around February 2020, Giannakakis' younger brother became the prime suspect in the investigation of four fires set at Jewish-related institutions in the Boston area.

The first event took place on May 11, 2019, at the Chabad Center of Arlington; the second at the same location on May 16, 2019; a third at the Chabad Center in Needham; and the fourth on May 26, 2019, at a Jewish-affiliated business in Chelsea.

The charges of making a false statement in a case related to domestic terrorism and falsifying, concealing or suppressing any fact in a case related to domestic terrorism are punishable by up to eight years in prison. Each charge of concealing records, tampering with documents and objects and tampering with official proceedings in a federal investigation carries a sentence of up to 20 years in prison.