Stoughton Man Pleads Guilty to Bomb Threats Across States

BOSTON – In a chilling case of cyberterrorism, Anthony Rae, 25, of Stoughton, Mass., pleaded guilty today in U.S. District Court to sending bomb threats to multiple schools and universities across three states.

Rae’s spree began in October 2014 with emails from a Gmail account threatening an elementary school in Chicago and several public schools in Norwood. He then used his mother’s Hotmail account to send bomb threats to ITT Technical Institute, his own school, in Norwood.

Over nine months, Rae employed various email accounts to perpetuate his terror campaign. Law enforcement finally caught up in June 2015 when they secured a search warrant for Rae’s residence and seized electronic devices. Rae continued his threats from a computer at his apartment complex before being arrested on June 19, 2015.

Rae faces a maximum sentence of ten years in prison, three years supervised release, and a fine of $250,000. Sentencing will be determined by U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani based on the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

The investigation was conducted by multiple law enforcement agencies, including the Chicago Police Department’s Arson Section, Norwood and Stoughton Police Departments, Rhode Island State Police Computer Crimes Unit, and several campus police departments. The Massachusetts MetroLEC Cyber Crimes Unit and the Norfolk District Attorney’s Office also played significant roles.

Assistant United States Attorney Jordi de Llano of Ortiz’s Criminal Division is handling the prosecution of this case.