In New York, a man from Oregon is under federal scrutiny for false bomb threat allegations directed towards Jewish medical institutions and care centers.
Domagoj Patkovic, aged 31, from Portland, Oregon, is being accused of numerous charges such as planning and executing threats related to explosives, plotting to transmit and sending threatening messages, and giving false information regarding explosives, as stated in an indictment submitted by the Eastern District of New York's prosecutors.
As per the indictment, Patkovic reportedly made at least 6 aggressive and menacing phone calls to Jewish hospitals and a network of care centers between May and September 2021. During these calls, Patkovic declared having planted bombs at these locations and threatened to detonate them in Manhattan, Queens, Brooklyn, and Long Island, while also using derogatory remarks against Jews.
Additionally, according to court papers, Patkovic broadcasted these threatening calls live to others on servers operating on the online social media and messaging service Discord.
US Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, Breon Peace, stated in a statement, "According to the charges, the defendant and his accomplices, fueled by their hatred towards Jewish individuals, targeted Jewish hospitals and care centers in New York City and on Long Island with fake bomb threats," unnecessarily endangering patients and staff by creating panic and confusion. "Our top priority is ensuring the safety of our entire community, and we will employ all the available legal tools to prosecute harmful bomb threats and swatting incidents to the fullest extent of the law."
Local law enforcement agents responded to a few of Patkovic’s supposed swatting threats and conducted bomb searches of multiple structures, as mentioned in a statement. A call in September led to a partial evacuation and lockdown of an entire Long Island hospital, the statement declared. No explosives were ever discovered.
CNN has sought comment from Patkovic's defense attorney.
Christie Curtis, the FBI's New York acting assistant director in charge, said in a statement, "Such alleged actions triggered unnecessary fear and diverted valuable resources to counteract a false alert. The FBI will not tolerate individuals who utilize hoax bomb threat schemes to foster their anti-Semitic sentiments and jeopardize the security of our communities."
Patkovic is scheduled to appear in the US District Court of Oregon on Tuesday afternoon, with prosecutors requesting Magistrate Judge Youlee Yim Yu to detain Patkovic before trial, according to court records. If detained, Patkovic will then be transported by the US Marshal Service to Brooklyn for his federal court arraignment, according to a source.
If found guilty, Patkovic confronts a potential penalty of 155 years in prison.
The Eastern District of New York's prosecutors are aggressively pursuing the case against Domagoj Patkovic, as they believe he poses a threat to the US community due to his accusations.
In the light of these serious allegations, the US Marshal Service has been ordered to transport Patkovic from Oregon to Brooklyn for his federal court arraignment.
