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December 17, 2019

Massachusetts Man Arrested for Threatening to Bomb the IRS

On November 4, 2019, in the District of Massachusetts, Shawn Richardson was arrested in connection with making a telephone threat to injure by means of an explosive. He was previously charged with the offense on October 30, 2019.

According to the criminal complaint, on October 29, 2019, Richardson called the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to enquire about a tax question and his call was routed to the IRS Brookhaven Service Center in Holtsville, New York. During the call, Richardson became extremely agitated due to his financial situation and made various violent threats towards the IRS, its employees, and law enforcement. He specifically stated that he would bomb the IRS office. He stated, “I have not made it yet, I have to go to Home Depot and get some nitro and get a few other things. And then deposit it myself and then blow myself up with the bomb because it doesn’t really matter.”

Richardson then called the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA). During the phone call, Richardson quickly became enraged regarding his financial situation and blamed the Government for ruining his life. Richardson acknowledged that he made the threatening phone call to the IRS that morning and reiterated that he did not currently have a bomb, but that he would make one and blow up the IRS. Richardson stated the IRS needed to be destroyed, as it was ruining people’s lives, and that he would destroy it.

At his residence, in a conversation with agents, Richardson stated that the IRS was ruining his life and that he would do whatever he could to destroy the IRS and the U.S. Government. Richardson stated that the only way to achieve this would be through violent means. When informed that threatening the IRS was a crime, Richardson replied that he would continue to seek retribution through violence, as his only option.

On November 4, 2019, Richardson made his initial appearance and was remanded to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service. If convicted, Richardson could face a maximum statutory sentence of 10 years’ imprisonment.

Source:  The facts in this case narrative come from the following publicly available documents: D. Mass. Crim. Compl. filed October 30, 2019; D. Mass. Executed Arrest Warrant filed October 30, 2019; D. Mass. Crim. Docket as of November 12, 2019.