Former journalist and St. Louis resident Juan Thompson was arrested Friday morning after a federal investigation into a series of bomb threats against Jewish Community Centers (JCCs) and schools, The New York Times reported.
According to Reuters, Thompson made eight bomb threats to Jewish organizations across the United States, including one where he called for a “Jewish Newtown” and posed as an ex-girlfriend in retaliation for their breakup.
In late January, Thompson began emailing bomb threats to Jewish groups using his own name, and then accused his ex-girlfriend on Twitter of having framed him. He also sent threats pretending to be her, according to a federal complaint filed in Manhattan on Friday.
According to the complaint, on Feb. 1, Thompson claimed he had placed two bombs in a Jewish school in Farmington Hills, Mich., and said he was "eager for a Jewish Newtown," referring to the December 2012 school massacre in Newtown, Connecticut, where a gunman killed 20 students and six school employers, the Times reported.
Thompson previously served as a reporter for The Intercept, a news website, before being fired last year for allegedly inventing sources and quotes, Reuters wrote.
The news site commented on the story in a statement, saying it was “horrified” to learn about its former employer’s actions.
U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Preet Bharara announced in a statement that Thompson was charged with one count of cyberstalking and will be presented in federal court later today, according to the Times.
“Threats of violence targeting people and places based on religion or race—whatever the motivation—are unacceptable, un-American and criminal,” Mr. Bharara said. “We are committed to pursuing and prosecuting those who foment fear and hate through such criminal threats.”
