Federal officials said an Arizona man was arrested Wednesday after allegedly emailing a threat to bomb the White House and other sites in Washington, D.C.
Jacob Aaron Hicks, 46, of Tucson, faces a federal charge of transmitting an interstate threat to cause injury, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona.
The criminal complaint alleges that Hicks contacted a Tucson television station by email on Sept. 23, warning of an “imminent bomb strike against the White House and other locations in Washington, D.C.”
The station reported the message to law enforcement, setting off an investigation into the alleged threat.
Federal authorities arrested an Arizona man accused of emailing a bombing threat involving the White House and other Washington, D.C., locations. (Kevin Carter/Getty Images)
Investigators later determined that Hicks was allegedly behind the email, authorities said.
“Threats of violence such as this must be treated with the utmost seriousness,” U.S. Attorney Timothy Courchaine said in a statement.
Courchaine thanked the Tucson news station for notifying authorities and praised the FBI for responding to the matter “quickly, professionally, and with the level of commitment it required.”
Federal investigators also found other draft messages in an email account associated with Hicks, officials said.
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The FBI and U.S. Secret Service investigated an alleged threat to bomb the White House and other locations in Washington, D.C. (Getty Images)
The drafts were dated Sept. 23 and addressed to additional news organizations. Officials said they contained threats similar to the one sent to the Tucson station, including references to the White House and other Washington, D.C., sites.
The FBI is handling the investigation with support from the U.S. Secret Service.
Rebecca Day, special agent in charge of the FBI’s Phoenix field office, also credited the station for bringing the alleged threat to the attention of law enforcement.
“We appreciate the community partner who reported the threat to law enforcement,” Day said. “Cooperation and partnership are essential to protecting the American people.”
The U.S. Secret Service assisted in investigating an alleged bombing threat directed at the White House and other Washington, D.C., locations. (Julia Demaree Nikhinson/AP Photo)
Hicks appeared for the first time in federal court Thursday, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
