NEWS RELEASE
UNITED STATES ATTORNEY'S OFFICE
WESTERN DISTRICT OF VIRGINIA
John L. Brownlee United States Attorney Brian McGinn Public Affairs Specialist |
BB&T Building 310 1st Street, S.W., Room 906 Roanoke, Virginia 24011 (540) 857-2974 FAX (540) 857-2179 |
March 12, 2008
COLLEGE STUDENT CHARGED WITH POSTING DEATH THREATS ON-LINE
United States Attorney John L. Brownlee announced today that Allen Leon Sammons, age 27, of Oakwood, Virginia, appeared today in United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia in Abingdon after being arrested on a criminal complaint.
“The security on our college and university campuses is a top priority of the law enforcement community,” U.S. Attorney John Brownlee said today. “I am thankful that the men and women investigating this case were able to thwart this threat of violence before it escalated.”
Sammons has been charged with transmitting in interstate commerce a communication containing a threat to injure the person of another. This charge arose out of an investigation begun by the University of Illinois Police Department and continued by the Buchanan County Sheriff’s Office, the Big Stone Gap Police Department, the Virginia State Police, and the Bristol office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
The charge alleges that on or about December 29, 2007, Sammons posted a death threat to several individuals on a social networking website. Sammons was first detained by authorities in January 2008 after sending an e-mail to an investigator with the University of Illinois stating that he intended to travel to Illinois, where at least one of the individuals named in the posting resided.
Sammons must be indicted by a grand jury for the charges to proceed. If ultimately convicted, the maximum penalty faced by the defendant on this charge is 5 years imprisonment and a fine of $250,000.
Assistant United States Attorney Jennifer R. Bockhorst will prosecute the case.
A criminal complaint is only a charge and not evidence of guilt. The defendant is entitled to a fair trial with the burden on the government to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.