Rochester Man Pleads Guilty to Making Bomb Threats Against Kodak

ROCHESTER, NY—U.S. Attorney William J. Hochul, Jr. announced today that Omer Fadhel Saleh Mohammed, 31, of Rochester, New York, pleaded guilty to making false bomb threats before U.S. District Judge Charles J. Siragusa. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison, a fine of $250,000, or both.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Anthony M. Bruce, who is handling the case, stated that on September 24, 2012, the defendant made three phone calls to 911 and told the operator that his acquaintances were terrorists and were going to blow up the Kodak Corporation. Mohammed made a fourth call on January 24, 2013, claiming that an acquaintance had explosives hidden at a location in Rochester and planned to use those explosives to bomb Kodak. The 911 calls resulted in emergency responses by the Rochester Police and Fire Departments and by Kodak security personnel, but searches failed to turn up any bombs or evidence that someone had attempted to plant a bomb at any of Kodak's facilities.

The plea is the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Brian P. Boetig.

Sentencing is scheduled for April 4, 2014, before Judge Siragusa.