Disgraced Reporter Arrested for Terrorizing Jewish Community Centers

A disgraced reporter briefly employed by The Intercept has been arrested by the FBI in connection to a string of threats made on Jewish Community Centers across the United States, as well as a bomb threat called in to the Anti-Defamation League in New York.

Juan Thompson, 31, was arrested in St. Louis on Friday, for making at least eight bomb threats, apparently in an attempt to harass and smear a former girlfriend, as several of the threats were made in her name. The suspect is is also charged with cyberstalking.

— Juan M. Thompson (@JuanMThompson) February 24, 2017

The FBI believes that Thompson was behind at least eight of the 122 bomb threats that have been called into Jewish community centers, schools, and child care facilities since January 9.

— Juan M. Thompson (@JuanMThompson) February 27, 2017

Thompson reportedly made his first threats on January 28, using both his and his ex-girlfriend’s name. He also created a fake email address to make it seem as if his ex-girlfriend was setting him up as the perpetrator behind the threats.

“According to a federal complaint, the pair broke up last summer. The following day, her boss received an email purporting to be from a national news organization saying that she'd been pulled over for drunken driving,” the Associated Press reports.

In an email to the San Diego JCC, Thompson allegedly wrote that his ex-girlfriend "hates Jewish people and is the head of a ring and put a bomb in the center to kill as many Jews asap.”

Thompson was fired from the Intercept after publishing fake stories, impersonating the outlet’s editor-in-chief Betsy Reed, and creating email accounts to fabricate fake sources. One of the stories that turned out to be false was about Charleston church-shooter Dylann Roof.

“We were horrified to learn this morning that Juan Thompson, a former employee of The Intercept, has been arrested in connection with bomb threats against the ADL and multiple Jewish Community Centers in addition to cyberstalking. These actions are heinous and should be fully investigated and prosecuted,” a statement from The Intercept read.

A recent tweet from Thompson, which is cited in the criminal complaint, stated that he needed a lawyer because his ex-girlfriend wants him to be “raped in jail.”

“Know any good lawyers? Need to stop this nasty/racist [white girl] I dated who sent a bomb threat in my name & wants me to be raped in jail.”

On Monday, Thompson tweeted an apparent condemnation of the threats, writing, “another week, another round of threats against Jewish ppl. In the middle of the day, you know who’s at a JCC? Kids. KIDS.”