A California man has been charged with making threats against The Boston Globe, reports NBC. Robert Chain, a 68-year-old man in Encino, California, was arrested by FBI agents following threats he allegedly made to the Globe after their recent editorial about political attacks on the media.
BREAKING / NBC News: The FBI has arrested Robert Chain, 68, from Encino, California for threats they say he made to The Boston Globe following their recent editorial about the press.
Chain allegedly referred to the Boston Globe as “the enemy of the people” in phone calls.
— Tom Winter (@Tom_Winter) August 30, 2018
Chain is accused of making threatening phone calls to the Globe’s newsroom immediately after the daily publication announced on Aug. 10 that it was requesting support from newspapers around the country to fight in the form of a coordinated editorial response.
NBC News: According to the criminal complaint Chain threatened to travel to The Boston Globe and kill newspaper employees.
Here’s what the FBI says is a transcript of one of his recorded calls: pic.twitter.com/XDNu2rDTSE
— Tom Winter (@Tom_Winter) August 30, 2018
WHDH reports that in a total of about 14 calls over the course of 12 days, Chain referred to the paper as “the enemy of the people” and threatened to kill newspaper employees. On the day the coordinated editorial response was published, Chain allegedly called the Globe and threatened to shoot employees in the head.
NBC News: In a statement, U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts Andrew Lelling says:
“In a time of increasing political polarization, and amid the increasing incidence of mass shootings, members of the public must police their own political rhetoric. Or we will.” https://t.co/y4EsqFCyhs
— Tom Winter (@Tom_Winter) August 30, 2018
Chain will appear in federal court in Los Angeles on Thursday afternoon and will be transferred to Boston at a later date, according to WHDH.
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