Bryant Alexander Hairston, False Statement, Virginia 2013

Former Student Sentenced For Hoax Call In Virginia

ABINGDON, VIRGINIA – A former student at the University of Virginia’s College at Wise (UVa-Wise) has been sentenced to five days of jail time and two years of supervised release for making a false 911 call about a gunman on campus.

Bryant Alexander Hairston, 20, of Martinsville, Virginia, was sentenced in the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia in Abingdon to the five days of jail time already served and supervised release for a term of two years for his conviction of one count of making false statements in a matter within the jurisdiction of the Executive Branch of the United States and one count of making false statements under oath.

On January 23, 2013, Hairston told a 911 dispatcher that there was a gunman on the campus of UVa-Wise who was trying to get into one of the residence halls. Hairston told the dispatcher that the man had a pistol. The campus was placed on lock down and law enforcement officers from various agencies responded to the scene. Armed officers went door to door through the residence hall searching for the alleged gunman.

Hairston admitted that he made up the story about a man having a gun because he wanted to look like a hero. “When Mr. Hairston falsely claimed to have seen a gunman on the campus of UVa-Wise, he instigated an immediate emergency response and caused significant stress among his fellow students and their families,” said United States Attorney Timothy J. Heaphy.

Hairston was ordered to make restitution in the amount of $4,010.00 to reimburse the various law enforcement and counseling agencies for their costs in responding to the 911 call and dealing with traumatized students.

The investigation of the case was conducted by the police departments of UVa-Wise, Pound, and Wise; the Wise County Sheriff’s Office; the Virginia State Police; and the Bristol Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Randy Ramseyer prosecuted the case for the United States.

Hairston previously pled guilty to these charges on May 31, 2013, pursuant to a plea agreement. Pursuant to the plea agreement, the government agreed to recommend the sentence that the Court imposed today.

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