Man Indicted in Bomb Threat Against Tennessee Mosque
Department of Justice officials announced Thursday that a Texas man was indicted by a federal grand jury and charged with violating the civil rights of members of the Islamic Center of Murfreesboro, Tenn.
Javier Alan Correa, 24, of Corpus Christi, Texas, is charged with one count of intentionally obstructing by threat of force the free exercise of religious beliefs and one count of using an instrument of interstate commerce to communicate a threat to destroy a building by means of an explosive device.
According to the indictment, Correa called the mosque on Sept. 5, 2011, on a cell phone from Corpus Christi and left a threatening, expletive-ridden voice message saying, among other things, “On Sept. 11, 2011, there’s going to be a bomb in the building.”
U.S. Attorney Jerry Martin issued a strong statement from the construction site of the new Islamic Center.
“The Department of Justice, the FBI and our law enforcement partners intend to protect the rights afforded under the Constitution to all individuals, including the most basic right to exercise freedom of religious beliefs. The controversy and criminal activity surrounding the construction of this particular place of worship has impeded the ability of people to exercise that most basic right,” Martin said.
“We will continue to monitor the progress of construction and legal proceedings at the local level to ensure these citizens are able to enjoy all basic liberties guaranteed under the Constitution.”