Teen arrested in Texas charged in bomb threats in Martinsburg, W.Va., across country

MARTINSBURG, W.Va. — A teenager was arrested in Texas and is being charged with making terroristic threats after allegedly being connected to bomb threats across the country. Among the incidents he is accused of is making a bomb threat during a Martinsburg City Council meeting in early May, according to the Martinsburg Police Department.

The 15-year-old was arrested on May 10, the day after the threat was called into the Martinsburg meeting, according to a news release issued Thursday by Martinsburg Police. The teen was in Muleshoe, Texas, when arrested.

Muleshoe is near the Texas Panhandle.

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In addition to the third-degree felony charge he faces in Bailey County, Texas, the boy faces a charge of disrupting a governmental event related to the Martinsburg incident, the release states.

He faces additional charges stemming from other bomb threat incidents across the country, Martinsburg Police said. In those instances, police departments received false claims of bombs placed on patrol cars and threats to shoot officers when they arrived, the release states.

"The arrest of this individual is a crucial step in ensuring the safety and security of our community," Martinsburg Police Chief Erin Gibbons said in the release. "We are grateful for the collaboration and swift action taken by law enforcement agencies across multiple states to bring this case to a resolution."

Martinsburg Police, in the release, thanked the Eastern Panhandle Drugs and Violent Crimes Task Force, the FBI, the Texas Department of Public Safety and the Berkeley County Sheriff's Office for their help with the investigation.

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Mail: Teen arrested in Texas connected to Martinsburg, W.Va., bomb threat