Rosmore’s 34-year-old Jeremy David Hanson has been charged with one count of interstate threats of violence in federal court, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Massachusetts, where Merriam-Webster is based.
CNN left messages on numbers related to his family on Saturday, but were not returned. CNN also asked Merriam-Webster for comment, but received no response at the time of publication.
According to a criminal complaint between 2 October and 8 October 2021, Merriam-Webster received threatening messages sent online via the “Contact Us” page on the company’s website and in the comments section for web pages that meet the definitions of the word “girl”. and “Woman.”
A user registered as @anonYmous also shared opinions “on certain controversial topics and comments demonstrating bias” in the comments section of web pages that match the definitions of “boy”, “girl”, “woman” and “transgender”, the complaint he says.
A post by @anonYmous under the October 2 dictionary entry for a woman reads: “It is absolutely disgusting that Merriam-Webster is now telling outright lies and promoting anti-scientific propaganda. There is no such thing as “gender identity”. The imbecile who wrote this recording must be persecuted and shot, “the complaint said.
Over a period of time last October, Hanson claimed to have used the “Contact Us” page on the company’s website to send “threatening and contemptuous messages about the LGBTQ community,” U.S. Attorney Rachel S. said in a press release. Rollins.
Less than a week later, Merriam-Webster received a disturbing message under the entry in the Dictionary of the Girl’s Website. “The idiot who created this false definition must be persecuted and shot. I am fed up and fed up with these cultural Marxists who deny science and destroy the English language. Merriam-Webster’s headquarters must be shot and bombed. Boys are not girls.
The announcement prompted the company to close its offices in Springfield, Massachusetts and New York in approximately five business days, the press release said.
Authorities later identified @anonYmous as Hanson, tracing the origin of the messages in an account linked to his family’s home, according to court documents and a statement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
If convicted, Hanson could face up to five years in prison and three years of controlled release, along with a $ 250,000 fine, according to the appeal.
“Everyone has the right to express their opinion, but repeated threats to kill people are said to take it to a new level,” said Joseph R. Bonavolonta, a special agent in charge of the FBI’s Boston division.
“We will always persecute people who try to intimidate and isolate members of our community by inciting violent, hateful actions. “Threats to life are certainly not protected speech and cause real fear among the victims,” Bonavolonta said.
Hanson is due to appear in federal court in Massachusetts on April 29, according to a press release.
Investigators have identified similar reports, which they believe are related to Hanson, to other organizations and officials, including the American Civil Liberties Union, Amnesty International and the president of the University of North Texas.
Rollins said that her office and law enforcement “will not tolerate threats against members of our communities, no matter from which corner of the Internet they are sent.”
“Hateful threats and intimidation have no place in our society,” Rollins said.
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