A former Northeastern University employee was convicted of staging a hoax explosion and lying to a federal agent about the hoax, Acting United States Attorney Joshua Levy’s office announced.
Jason Duhaime, 46, previously of San Antonio, was convicted of intentionally conveying false and misleading information related to an explosive device and two counts of making materially false statements to a federal law enforcement agent, Levy’s office said in a statement released Friday.
In Boston, U.S. Senior District Court Judge William scheduled Duhaime’s sentencing for Oct. 2. Duhaime was previously arrested and charged on Oct. 2, 2022, and was indicted by a federal grand jury on Oct. 27, 2022.
Working as the New Technology Manager and Director of the Immersive Media Lab at Northeastern University, Duhaime called the campus police department at around 7 p.m. on Sept. 13, 2022. He said he was injured after a plastic case he opened projectiles sharp objects at him, Levy’s office said.
Duhaime told a police dispatcher that he and a student who was working the lab had collected several packages, including two Pelican-style cases, from the mail area. One was opened inside a storage closet and he claimed that “very sharp” objects flew out and under his shirt sleeves, injuring his arms.
Media outlets later reported that investigators were focusing on whether the incident was a hoax. The package was reported to be a Pelican-style case with a “rambling” message railing against Facebook, its founder Mark Zuckerberg, and the university’s work with virtual reality technology. The case contained a “violent note” that threatened to “destroy the lab.”
“In the case you got today we could have planted explosives but not this time!!!” the letter read. “Take notice!!! You have two months to take operations down or else!!!!! WE ARE WATCHING YOU.”
Jason Duhaime allegedly authored a “rambling” letter criticizing Mark Zuckerberg and virtual reality, according to authorities. (Chris Van Buskirk/MassLive)
Duhaime’s concern about a second, unopened Pelican case triggered a significant police response, requiring the presence of the Boston Police Department’s bomb squad and the assistance of several federal and state law enforcement agencies, Levy’s office said. Part of the university’s campus needed to be evacuated.
In two statements on Sept. 13 and 14, 2022, Duhaime’s statements to investigators were consistent with what he told dispatchers and denied fabricating the Pelican case story and the injuries to his arms, Levy’s office said.
But police said the case and the threatening note Duhaime said it contained did not appear damaged by any explosive, nor did the room they were in contain debris indicative of an explosion.
An investigation of one of the computers revealed an exact electronic copy of the anonymous threat letter, Levy’s office said. The letter was created and printed between around 2:50 p.m. and 3:56 p.m., hours before he first reported the incident.
Duhaime’s trial began on July 24.
The charges of intentionally conveying false and misleading information related to an explosive device and making materially false statements to a federal law enforcement agent each provide for a sentence of up to five years in prison, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000.
