Lawyer in Illinois comptroller’s office fired over antisemitic comments on Instagram

An attorney with the Illinois comptroller’s office was fired Thursday over antisemitic comments she made earlier in the day on Instagram.

A screenshot of the Instagram exchange was reposted to X. The comptroller’s office was made aware of the posts about 12:30 p.m., the office said. 

Comptroller Susana Mendoza’s office contacted the employee about an hour and a half later, then fired her after she admitted to some of the comments, the office said.

“Comptroller Mendoza has zero tolerance for antisemitism or hate speech,” a statement from Mendoza’s office said.

The employee fired is legal counsel Sarah Chowdhury, the Sun-Times confirmed. She allegedly made the comments in private direct messages with an Instagram account called Big Law Boiz.

Among the messages were “All you zionists will pay” and “Hitler should have eradicated all of you.” A screenshot of other messages she allegedly sent, which the Big Law Boiz account made public earlier Thursday, included, “Hopefully someone sends you anthrax or poison and you die a slow terrible death” and “Burn in hell.”

Chowdhury was also ousted from her position as president of the South Asian Law Association.

Chowdhury had been with the comptroller’s office for three years, handling research and legal memos, a comptroller spokesperson said.

Mendoza released a statement a day after Hamas’ surprise Oct. 7 attack on Israel, supporting Israel’s “right to utilize the full extent of its powers to defend itself.”

This incident comes as crimes and threats against Jews and Muslims are reportedly on the rise.

Last week, a Palestinian American boy was stabbed to death in Plainfield Township. This week, a man in DuPage County was arrested on suspicion of threatening to kill two Muslim men. And a woman in Portage Park told police that someone replaced an Israeli flag from her yard with a Palestinian flag.