Maryland Man Pleads Guilty to Facebook Threats

Seyed Ali Soroushjou, a 38-year-old man from Cockeysville, Maryland, has pleaded guilty to sending threatening communications online via Facebook. The charges stem from a 2016 harassment campaign that targeted a Jacksonville woman and three NYPD officers she photographed. Soroushjou faces up to five years in federal prison, with sentencing pending.

On August 29, 2016, the victim, identified only as Person A, contacted law enforcement after receiving a series of menacing messages from an unknown Facebook user. The account, operating under the name ‘MobyDick NahanghaVahshi,’ threatened violence in graphic detail. The user claimed he would assault the NYPD officers in the photo and later explicitly threatened to sexually assault the woman herself.

Investigators traced the account back to Soroushjou through digital forensics. The messages were sent in direct response to a photo the victim posted of herself posing with the officers. The first threat was delivered on August 24, 2016. Three days later, the second message escalated in violence and sexual menace, prompting immediate federal intervention.

A search warrant executed at Soroushjou’s Maryland residence led to his arrest. Federal agents seized three computer devices used to access the victim’s Facebook profile and send the threats. Since his arrest, Soroushjou has remained in federal custody without bond.

The FBI handled the investigation, uncovering digital footprints that linked Soroushjou directly to the threatening posts. Evidence included login records, IP addresses, and message metadata, all corroborating the connection between the defendant and the ‘MobyDick NahanghaVahshi’ account.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney D. Rodney Brown. Soroushjou’s guilty plea marks a rare federal conviction under statutes governing online threats. No sentencing date has been scheduled.

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