Current:Home > BackPeruvian man arrested for sending more than 150 hoax bomb threats to US schools, airports-Angel Dreamer Wealth Society D1 Reviews & Insights
Peruvian man arrested for sending more than 150 hoax bomb threats to US schools, airports
View Date:2024-12-24 07:21:08
A man was arrested in Peru for sending more than 150 hoax bomb threats to schools and other public places in the United States, some in retaliation against teenage girls who refused to send him sexually explicit photos, according to Department of Justice officials.
Eddie Manuel Nunez Santos, 32, a website developer in Peru, was arrested by Peruvian authorities on Tuesday in Lima. He was accused of sending fake bomb threats to school districts, synagogues, airports, hospitals, and shopping malls between Sept. 15 and Sept. 21, 2023, according to a release.
He is charged with transmitting threatening interstate communications, conveying false information and hoaxes, attempting to sexually exploit a child, attempting to coerce and entice a minor, and attempting to receive child pornography. Nunez Santos faces a maximum sentence of life in prison if he's convicted.
Justice officials said the hoaxes caused massive disruptions across five states — New York, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Arizona, and Alaska — and caused evacuations of thousands of school kids, a hospital lockdown and flight delays.
“As alleged, the defendant’s relentless campaign of false bomb threats caused an immediate mobilization by federal and state authorities, diverting critical law enforcement and public safety resources, and caused fear in hundreds of communities across this country,” said U.S. Attorney Damian Williams in a statement.
'SHOOK THE SENSE OF SAFETY':Ex-Indiana substitute teacher gets 10 months in prison for sending hoax bomb threats to schools, newspaper
'The bombs will blow up in a few hours'
The FBI began receiving reports of bomb threats sent to various public institutions primarily through email or online contact forms on Sept. 15, according to the release. Investigators said the hoaxes all contained "substantially similar" content. An email address was connected to a Peruvian phone number and IP address.
According to a complaint, Nunez Santos sent an email to a synagogue in Westchester County, New York, that read, "I placed multiple bombs inside the Jewish Center. The bombs I placed in the building will blow up in a few hours. Many people will lay in a pool of blood."
On Sept. 20, he sent emails containing the following threats to approximately 24 school districts in Pennsylvania: "The bombs will blow up in a few hours. I’ll gladly smile when your families are crying because of your deaths." The bomb hoaxes caused 1,100 schoolchildren across the state to be evacuated, justice officials said.
'TAKE IT DOWN':New tool helps teens, others wipe the web of explicit images taken without consent
Child 'sextortion' charges
The bomb threats included directives for the institutions to contact phone numbers or IP addresses belonging to underaged girls, including 17 and 13-year-old girls living in Pennsylvania and a 15-year-old girl in New York, according to officials.
The girls had engaged with Nunez Santos, who investigators said had lied that he was a 15-year-old boy named Lucas. Officials said he repeatedly asked at least two of the girls to send him nude photos of themselves. When they refused or ceased contact with him, he threatened to bomb their schools and kill them.
"Not only did Santos email hundreds of hoax bomb threats terrorizing schools, hospitals, and houses of worship, he also perversely tried to sextort innocent teenage girls," said FBI Assistant Director in Charge James Smith in a statement.
According to the complaint, the interactions with the three teenage girls happened on an unnamed game platform since at least June. One girl warned her friend about "Lucas," who had asked her to send him illicit photos of herself. The friend blocked him, and "Lucas" contacted a third girl and said he would bomb the other girl’s school.
In conversations dated Sept. 15, "Lucas" said in the gaming platform’s messenger that he had emailed bomb threats to school districts in Pennsylvania and included the girl’s telephone number in those threats. Some bomb threats were sent with a directive to contact another girl’s IP address, according to the complaint.
Other messages sent in September included threats to kidnap and injure people, according to DOJ officials.
'IMAGINE THE PANIC':A teen was catfished, extorted and took his own life. Now, his father is speaking out.
veryGood! (9871)
Related
- Taylor Swift gifts 7-year-old '22' hat after promising to meet her when she was a baby
- In 1989, a distraught father was filmed finding the body of his 5-year-old son. He's now accused in the boy's murder.
- Lily-Rose Depp Celebrates First Dating Anniversary With Girlfriend 070 Shake
- US intensifies oversight of Boeing, will begin production audits after latest mishap for planemaker
- Wall Street makes wagers on the likely winners and losers in a second Trump term
- IRS says it collected $360 million more from rich tax cheats as its funding is threatened yet again
- ABC's 'The Good Doctor' is ending with Season 7
- Democratic Sen. Bob Casey says of Austin's initial silence on hospitalization there's no way it's acceptable — The Takeout
- Tuskegee University closes its campus to the public, fires security chief after shooting
- Haley’s frequent reference to new anti-DeSantis website falls flat with some supporters in Iowa
Ranking
- New 'Yellowstone' is here: Season 5 Part 2 premiere date, time, where to watch
- Michelle Troconis, accused of helping to cover up killing of Connecticut mother Jennifer Dulos, set to go on trial
- Stacked bodies and maggots discovered at neglected Colorado funeral home, FBI agent says
- This week's news quiz separates the winners from the losers. Which will you be?
- The boy was found in a ditch in Wisconsin in 1959. He was identified 65 years later.
- Rome opens new archaeological park and museum in shadow of Colosseum
- Daniel Kaluuya on his first feature film as a director: All roads have been leading to this
- 50 years of history: Beverly Johnson opens up about being first Black model on Vogue cover
Recommendation
-
LSU student arrested over threats to governor who wanted a tiger at college football games
-
'Revolting' evidence against Texas man includes videos of group sexual abuse of toddlers: FBI
-
US investigating if Boeing made sure a part that blew off a jet was made to design standards
-
Lily-Rose Depp Celebrates First Dating Anniversary With Girlfriend 070 Shake
-
When does Spirit Christmas open? What to know about Spirit Halloween’s new holiday venture
-
AP Week in Pictures: Global | Jan 6-January 12, 2024
-
Wisconsin Supreme Court refuses to reconsider ruling ordering new legislative maps
-
Tom Brady reacts to Bill Belichick, Patriots parting ways with heartfelt message