Brian Williams, a former deputy mayor of public safety in Los Angeles, has agreed to plead guilty to making a fake bomb threat at City Hall, federal prosecutors announced on Thursday. Williams, 61, admitted to calling in the false threat, which was attributed to anti-Israel sentiment, in October 2024. He faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.
According to the plea agreement, Williams used the Google Voice application on his personal cellphone to call his city-issued phone during a virtual meeting. He then left the meeting to inform the LAPD Chief of Staff that he had received a bomb threat from an unknown caller. Williams falsely claimed the caller was upset with the city’s support of Israel and had placed a bomb in City Hall.
Approximately 10 minutes later, Williams sent a text message to the mayor and other high-ranking officials, reiterating the false bomb threat. He stated that the LAPD would search the building, although no suspicious devices were found. Williams later sent additional messages indicating there was no need to evacuate City Hall, citing the Jewish holidays as a reason for taking the threat seriously.
Williams has held various government positions over three decades, including serving as deputy mayor under former Mayor James Hahn and as executive director of the LA County Civilian Oversight Commission. He is expected to make his initial court appearance in the coming weeks.
U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli emphasized the seriousness of the situation, stating, “In an era of heated political rhetoric that has sometimes escalated into violence, we cannot allow public officials to make bomb threats.” The FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force is investigating the case, with substantial assistance from the LAPD.
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