Tucson man, 46, charged over emailed bomb threat against White House sent to news station

Mixed · 2Jacob Aaron Hicks, 46, of Tucson, Arizona, was arrested on Wednesday and charged by criminal complaint with making an interstate threat to injure, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Arizona. 1 2 Mixed · 2The complaint alleges that on Sept. 23 Hicks emailed a Tucson television station claiming there would be an "imminent bomb strike against the White House and other locations in Washington, D.C." 1 2 Mixed · 2The station alerted law enforcement, and investigators identified Hicks as the alleged sender. 1 2

Mixed · 2Investigators also found unsent email drafts in the account linked to Hicks, also dated Sept. 23, addressed to other news organizations and containing similar threats involving the White House and other Washington locations. 1 2 Mixed · 2U.S. Attorney Timothy Courchaine said, "We must take threats of violence like this one seriously," and thanked the news station for referring the threat and the FBI for acting quickly and professionally. 1 2 Right · 1The FBI is leading the investigation with assistance from the U.S. Secret Service, and FBI Phoenix Special Agent in Charge Rebecca Day credited the station for reporting the threat. 1

Mixed · 2Hicks made his initial appearance in federal court on Thursday; the allegations come from the complaint and have not been tested in court. 1 2