COVID-19 is no joke, and spreading fear using hoaxes related to the deadly disease is no funny matter. However, a 40-year-old man from Texas, USA seems to not have understood the gravity of such actions, and now finds himself in jail for 15 months.
Christopher Charles Perez, aka Christopher Robbins, from San Antonio, Texas was sentenced to 15 months in prison for perpetrating a COVID-19 related hoax in April 2020. Perez had posted messages o social media where he claimed that an infected individual had been paid by him to spread the virus in grocery stores.
"Those who would threaten to use COVID-19 as a weapon against others will be held accountable for their actions, even if the threat was a hoax," said Christopher Combs, Special Agent in Charge, FBI San Antonio Division, in a statement.
Issuing Threats of Infection
According to evidence presented in court during his trial, Perez had posted two threatening messages on Facebook. In these messages, he claimed that someone who was infected with the SARS-CoV-2 virus had been paid by him to lick items at grocery stores within the San Antonio area, with the intention of scaring people from visiting these stores.
A screenshot of the initial post was sent on 5 April 2020 to the Southwest Texas Fusion Center (SWTFC) via an online tip. The SWTFC then alerted the FBI office in San Antonio, which investigated the matter further.
It was found that Perez's threats were false. He had not paid anyone to carry out the act that he claimed to have paid for. Through and Perez's own admissions and investigators' findings, it was confirmed.
Jailed and Fined
Perez was found guilty of two counts under 18 U.S.C. 1038. Under this section, false information and hoaxes related to biological weapons are punishable by law. "Trying to scare people with the threat of spreading dangerous diseases is no joking matter. This office takes seriously threats to harm the community and will prosecute them to the full extent of the law," said US Attorney Ashley C. Hoff. "
In addition to his prison sentence, Perez has also been slapped with a fine of $1,000. Combs stressed, "Perez's actions were knowingly designed to spread fear and panic and today's sentencing illustrates the seriousness of this crime."
