Texas man told FBI he was just being ‘edgy’ in Federal Reserve bomb threat, feds say

A Texas man accused of threatening to bomb the Federal Reserve on Twitter is going to prison, officials say.

Joel Hayden Schrimsher, 19, pleaded guilty to conveying false or misleading information through the internet concerning the potential destruction of a federal building, according to the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Texas.

Schrimsher was accused of posting the tweet in May 2019 of a purported conversation with family members, officials say. A screenshot of the tweet from Schrimsher’s account named Hayden Ter(rawr)ist was included in the criminal complaint.

“Brother: Shutup communist (joking to my dad)

Dad: Don’t worry we’ll be socialist and bankrupt like Venezuela soon

Brother: No we won’t

Me: I’m gonna mail a bomb to the federal reserve

Brother: ok

Dad: yup”

Investigators obtained a search warrant for Schrimsher’s home in Harlingen, a city in South Texas, and found “physical and documentary evidence consistent with the message Schrimsher sent regarding the Federal Reserve building.” A federal judge said Schrimsher had “precursor chemicals” and bomb recipes in his bedroom, according to a news release.

Schrimsher told the FBI he was being “edgy” in the tweets, according to the complaint.

“The FBI and our law enforcement partners take threats of violence very seriously,” FBI Special Agent in Charge Christopher Combs said in a news release. “While law enforcement is committed to investigating these threats, members of the public play a critical role in helping law enforcement protect our community from violence by reporting online threats.”

Schrimsher was sentenced to two years in prison.

This story was originally published November 30, 2020 at 4:14 PM with the headline "Texas man told FBI he was just being ‘edgy’ in Federal Reserve bomb threat, feds say."