Student uses Powdered Sugar in Anthrax Threat

Sujithkumar Venkatramolla, a graduate student from India, made bomb and anthrax threats which shutdown the University of Missouri-Rolla.^[1] Venkatramolla was arrested on campus early Tuesday, February 27, after he walked into a civil engineering building wielding a knife, holding paper bag and saying he had a bomb and anthrax.^[2] Police ultimately restrained him with a stun gun after he refused to relinquish the knife. According to Police Chief Mark Kearse, Venkatramolla was depressed and apparently distraught over grades.^[3]

The bomb and anthrax threats were determined to be a hoax, and a thorough search of the building found no trace of explosives.^[4] The white, powdery substance found on the man was simply powdered sugar, said Lt. Col. David Boyle of the Missouri National Guard at Fort Leonard Wood.^[5]

Venkatramolla was charged in the state of Missouri, Wednesday, February 28, with armed criminal action, resisting arrest, false report of a bomb threat, making terrorist threats, and first-degree assault of a law enforcement officer.^[6]

In Missouri a person commits the crime of making a terrorist threat if that person communicates a threat to cause an incident or condition involving danger to life, communicates a knowingly false report of an incident or condition involving danger to life, or knowingly causes a false belief or fear that an incident has occurred or that a condition exists involving danger to life: 1) With the purpose of frightening ten or more people; 2) With the purpose of causing the evacuation, quarantine or closure of any portion of a building, inhabitable structure, place of assembly or facility of transportation; or 3) With reckless disregard of the risk of causing the evacuation, quarantine or closure of any portion of a building, inhabitable structure, place of assembly or facility of transportation; or 4) With criminal negligence with regard to the risk of causing the evacuation, quarantine or closure of any portion of a building, inhabitable structure, place of assembly or facility of transportation.^[7]

Terrorist threat is also very similar to the United States Federal crime of “false information and hoaxes,”^[8] which have been previously discussed here.

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^[1] Jim Salter, Graduate student charged with terrorist threats in anthrax, bomb scare at Missouri university, AP (via Boston Herald), February 28, 2007.
^[2] Id.
^[3] Id.
^[4] Id.
^[5] Id.
^[6] Id.
^[7] Mo. Rev. Stat. § 574.115 (2007).
^[8] 18 U.S.C. §1038 (2007).