After Slight, an Oregon Man Falsely Reported His Dad and Brother as Terrorists

He was apparently angry at his family.

Photo by xlibber on Flickr

Sonny Donnie Smith was not happy about being excluded from a family wedding. So, he made a costly prank call.

On September 3, 2016, NPR first reported last week, the 38-year-old Clackamas resident called McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas and Midland International Airport in Midland, Texas to falsely report his father and brother as terrorists.

The two were detained and questioned, missing their flight. But FBI investigators quickly caught on to the hoax.

"Today's technology makes some believe they can anonymously create chaos to resolve personal grievances," Renn Cannon, special agent in charge of the FBI in Oregon, said in a statement. He added that phony calls "use limited resources, potentially delaying response to other serious incidents and real victims."

Smith pleaded guilty to the charge of anonymous telephone harassment on Thursday, February 1. He now faces up to two years in prison, a $250,000 fine and one year of supervised release. His hearing is scheduled for May 10.

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