A 20-year-old Arkansas man was arrested after allegedly making threats of a mass shooting at Walmart if the United States were locked down due to the hantavirus outbreak that started on a cruise ship.
Aaron Keith Bynum, 20, was arrested on charges of first-degree terroristic threatening and harassing communications, according to a press release from the Marion County Sheriff’s Office. Deputies say the arrest stems from an investigation into threats made online.
The FBI’s National Threats Operations Center received an electronic tip May 9 that a player in an online multiplayer game had threatened a mass shooting at his local Walmart if the country were locked down again due to the hantavirus.
The tipster provided the player’s username along with an in-game recording of the threats, the press release states.
Two days later, officials say a subpoena was issued to the parent company of the game, identifying Bynum as the owner of the account.
Investigators with the Marion County Sheriff’s Office served a search warrant at Bynum’s home in Oakland, Arkansas, on Friday. While processing the scene, they seized a computer and computer accessories.
Bynum was taken into custody without incident and transported to the Marion County Detention Center, where he was booked and processed, according to the press release.
His bond was set at $2,500.
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