Sesser Man Indicted for Conveying False Allegations of a Terrorist Plot to Disrupt Election Day

The United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, Stephen R. Wigginton, announced today that Ray Allen Flener, 24, of Sesser, was indicted by a federal grand jury on charges that he made a false statement to a federal officer and he conveyed a false threat.

The indictment alleges in count one that on November 2, 2012, Flener, a detainee at the Franklin County Jail in Benton, told a special agent of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) that he had knowledge of a plan by a group called “the New World Order” to disrupt Election Day on November 6, 2012, by using weapons and explosives. Specifically, Flener told and showed the FBI agent the area in which the weapons and explosives allegedly had been stored in August 2012. Flener’s representations were false because, as Flener knew, he had no such knowledge of weapons and explosives having been stored at that location. The indictment alleges in count two that on November 1, 2012, Flener did intentionally convey false and misleading information under circumstances where such information may reasonably have been believed. Specifically, Flener told law enforcement officers from the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) that he had personal knowledge of a plan by a group called “the New World Order” to disrupt Election Day, November 6, 2012, by using weapons and explosives.

The first charge of making a false statement carries a maximum penalty of eight years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and up to three years of supervised release. The second charge of conveying a false threat carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and up to three years of supervised release.

An indictment is a formal charge against a defendant. Under the law, a defendant is presumed to be innocent of a charge and is entitled to a fair trial at which the United States must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

The case was investigated by Federal Bureau of Investigation; Illinois State Police; Illinois Department of Corrections; Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF); the Sheriff’s Offices of Franklin County, Williamson County, Saline County, and Jackson County; and the Police Departments of Marion, West Frankfort, and Johnston City. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Liam Coonan.