A California man was arrested after he threatened to bomb the offices of dictionary publisher Merriam-Webster over the definition of the words ‘woman’ and ‘girl’.
Jeremy David Hanson, 34, of Rossmoor, Calif. was arrested on Tuesday and charged with one count of interstate communication of threats to commit violence.
According to federal prosecutors Hanson allegedly sent the company several threatening messages through its “Contact us” section on its website and in the comments section on its webpages that corresponded to the word entries for “Girl” and “Woman.” The threats resulted in Merriam-Webster closing its offices in Springfield and New York City for approximately five business days.
In Oct. 2021, Hanson, using the handle “@anonYmous” commented on the website’s definition of ‘female’, writing: “It is absolutely sickening that Merriam-Webster now tells blatant lies and promotes anti-science propaganda. There is no such thing as ‘gender identity.’ The imbecile who wrote this entry should be hunted down and shot.”
Hanson also threatened to shoot up and bomb their headquarters killing all their employees in a message via the website’s “Contact Us” page.
“You [sic] headquarters should be shot up and bombed,” Hanson wrote. “It is sickening that you have caved to the cultural Marxist, anti-science tranny [sic] agenda and altered the definition of ‘female’ as part of the Left’s efforts to corrupt and degrade the English language and deny reality. You evil Marxists should all be killed. It would be poetic justice to have someone storm your offices and shoot up the place, leaving none of you commies alive.”
He threatened to “bomb your offices for lying and creating fake” in another message On Oct. 8.
“We believe Hanson sent a multitude of anonymous threatening and despicable messages related to the LGBTQ community that were intended to evoke fear and division,” U.S. Attorney for the District of Massachusetts, Rachael Rollins said. “My office and our law enforcement partners will not tolerate threats against members of our communities, no matter what corner of the internet they’re sent from. Perpetrators will be identified, arrested, and held accountable in federal court.”
Hanson also allegedly sent similar threats to the American Civil Liberties Union, Amnesty International, Land O’ Lakes, Hasbro, Inc., IGN Entertainment, the president of the University of North Texas, two professors at Loyola Marymount University and a New York City rabbi, according to prosecutors.
“Everyone has a right to express their opinion, but repeatedly threatening to kill people, as has been alleged, takes it to a new level. We are always going to pursue individuals who try to intimidate and isolate members of our community by inciting violent, hateful acts. Threats to life are most certainly not protected speech and they cause real fear in victims. Rest assured, the FBI will do everything we can to bring to justice anyone who commits these criminal acts,” Joseph R. Bonavolonta, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Boston Division said.
If convicted Hanson faces up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000.
