Arizona man arrested after allegedly emailing White House bomb threat to Tucson news station
Arrest in Tucson for Email Threats to White House and Washington, D.C. Locations
Tucson, Ariz. – A 46‑year‑old Tucson resident was taken into custody on Wednesday after allegedly sending an email that threatened to bomb the White House and other sites in Washington, D.C. Federal prosecutors charged the man with making an interstate threat to injure.
Jacob Aaron Hicks, 46, of Tucson, was arrested after a local television station received an email from him on September 23. In the message, Hicks claimed that an “imminent bomb strike” would be carried out against the White House and other Washington, D.C. locations. The station immediately alerted law‑enforcement authorities, sparking a federal investigation.
U.S. Attorney Timothy Courchaine, who heads the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona, said the threat must be taken seriously. “We must take threats of violence like this one seriously,” Courchaine stated. He added, “I am grateful to our local news station for referring this threat to law enforcement and to the FBI for addressing the situation quickly, professionally and with the level of commitment it required.”
Investigators, led by the FBI with assistance from the U.S. Secret Service, later discovered additional draft emails in Hicks’s account. Also dated September 23, the drafts were addressed to other news organizations and contained similar threats involving the White House and other Washington, D.C. sites. The presence of multiple drafts suggests a broader intent to spread intimidation.
FBI Phoenix Special Agent in Charge Rebecca Day credited the news station for reporting the threat. “We appreciate the community partner who reported the threat to law enforcement. Cooperation and partnership are essential to protecting the American people,” Day told reporters.
Hicks made his first appearance in federal court the day after his arrest. The charges he faces are part of a broader effort to address and mitigate threats to national security and public safety.
The case underscores the ongoing vigilance of federal agencies in monitoring and responding to violent threats, as well as the crucial role local media outlets play in reporting potential dangers to the community.