Jake J. Brahm Pleads Guilty

UPDATE, June 5, 2008: Brahm sentenced
______________


Jake J. Brahm (aka "javness")

Time for an update on Wauwatosa man Jake J. Brahm---

Brahm has accepted responsibility for posting threats on the Internet.

NEWARK, N.J. -- A man pleaded guilty Thursday to making bogus Internet postings warning of terrorist attacks against seven NFL stadiums in 2006.

Jake J. Brahm admitted that he posted false information that so-called dirty bombs would be detonated at the stadiums in Miami, Atlanta, Seattle, Houston, Oakland, Cleveland and New York on Oct. 22, 2006.

He said the reference to New York was intended to indicate Giants Stadium, in East Rutherford, N.J., where the Jets played the Detroit Lions that day.

Brahm, 22, of Wauwatosa, Wis., pleaded guilty to a one-count indictment that had been handed up exactly a year earlier. The charge, part of the Patriot Act, accused him of willfully conveying false information that the stadiums would be attacked by terrorists with weapons of mass destruction and "radiological dispersal devices."

Brahm admitted composing and posting the threat about 40 times on a Web site between September and Oct. 18, 2006. The message said that bombs would be delivered by trucks and that "the death toll will approach 100,000 from the initial blasts and countless other fatalities will later occur as result from radioactive fallout."

The posting added that the stadium explosions would be praised by Osama bin Laden as "America's Hiroshima" and spark global conflicts.

That's extremely serious stuff.

Brahm remains free on bail and faces up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine when sentenced June 5 by U.S. District Judge Jose L. Linares.

A message seeking comment from Brahm's lawyer, Walter A. Lesnevich, was not immediately returned. When Brahm was indicted last year, the lawyer said the incident was "greatly blown out of proportion."

"This was a stupid mistake by a kid that nobody took seriously," Lesnevich said last year.

Wrong.

It was a "stupid mistake" by a MAN that lots of people took seriously.

What did Brahm's threat cost taxpayers? How much fear did Brahm succeed in spreading?

I hope that Brahm's sentence will reflect the high toll his "prank" cost, both in dollars and fear.

Free Jake Brahm

UPDATE, June 5, 2008: Brahm sentenced
______________


UPDATE, February 28, 2008: Brahm Pleads Guilty
________________

Feeling sorry for Jake Brahm?

You may know him as "javness."

Sign this petition:

To: The U.S. Judicial System

Free Jake Brahm. By keeping this young man locked up, we are downplaying the freedoms that should make up the United States of America. Jake wrote a story, a ridiculous story, one that he didn't expect to leave a little niche of the Internet, but it escaped and spread like wildfire. This man stood up and took responsibility for his actions, he is an example of a good citizen. His intention was not to create this uproar that blew WAY out of proportion by the media and FBI.

Why punish someone who wished to set things straight? Free Jack Brahm.

Sincerely,

The Undersigned

I think I'll pass.

Jake Brahm: How to Screw Up Your Life Without Really Trying

UPDATE, June 5, 2008: Brahm Sentenced

________________

UPDATE, February 28, 2008: Brahm Pleads Guilty
________________


Paper or plastic?

As if getting arrested for posting bogus threats on the Internet isn't bad enough, now there's more disgrace for 20-year-old Wauwatosa man Jake Brahm, courtesy of The Smoking Gun.

[Brahm] apparently penned the threats as part of a harebrained contest with another man to see who could circulate the scariest Internet threat. This knucklehead behavior may not come as a surprise to anyone familiar with Brahm's other online activity via MySpace and an ambitious blog on which he recorded all of his 2006 masturbatory activity. In his most recent MySpace blog entry, Brahm, an avowed Japanese pornography enthusiast, mentioned Iran's president: "I admire Mahmoud Ahmadinejad," he wrote. In a separate post, he listed his hobbies as "masturbating, watching foreign language films, playing cards, drumming, and sleeping. One day I hope to leave my house."

His case provides a textbook example of how to screw up your life.

This supposedly "artsy, quiet, friendy, normal guy" has been outed as being far from your normal, average grocery store clerk. At least I think most clerks don't have blogs like Brahm's or post threats targeting NFL stadiums.

I bet Brian Ross is already seeing if he can uncover any IM Internet chats involving Brahm.

The guy must be so embarrassed.

I do see a way out though. The "artsy" Brahm could claim that his threats were really just performance art.

I bet a lib judge would buy that excuse.

Brahm could also say that it's George W. Bush's fault.

That always works.

_________________________________

UPDATE:

Bad news for Brahm.

A Wisconsin man arrested last fall in connection with prank Internet warnings of terrorist attacks against NFL stadiums has been indicted in Newark, N.J., on a federal charge of conveying the false information.

Jake J. Brahm of Wauwatosa, was charged Wednesday on accusations he posted threats to detonate “dirty bombs” at seven stadiums that had games on Oct. 22.

Authorities said his actions wasted homeland security efforts and likened them to the “Internet version of yelling fire in a crowded theater.”

However, Brahm’s lawyer, Walter A. Lesnevich, said the incident was “greatly blown out of proportion.”

“This was a stupid mistake by a kid that nobody took seriously,” Lesnevich said. The 22-year-old Brahm will plead not guilty, the lawyer said.

Wrong.

It was a "stupid mistake" by a MAN that lots of people took seriously.

Jake J. Brahm

UPDATE, June 5, 2008: Brahm sentenced
______________


UPDATE, February 28, 2008: Brahm Pleads Guilty
________________

It's time for quiet, artsy, friendly Jake J. Brahm to get his fifteen minutes of fame.

I bet he didn't see that coming.

From the Associated Press:

Federal authorities said today they have charged a 20-year-old Wauwatosa grocery store clerk with making a hoax threat that said seven football stadiums across the nation would be targeted by terrorists with radiological "dirty bombs" this weekend.

Jake J. Brahm surrendered to the U.S. Marshal's Service in Milwaukee on Friday morning. He was charged in a sealed criminal complaint filed Thursday in Newark, U.S. Attorney Christopher Christie said.

...Brahm was scheduled to make a court appearance later Friday in Milwaukee.

He was first taken into custody by police in Wauwatosa on Wednesday, based on information authorities received that Brahm was the source of the Internet threat to bomb football stadiums, federal authorities said.

FBI agents interviewed him that night, and the FBI said Thursday it had determined the threats were a hoax.

...An FBI official in Washington, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the case is still under investigation, told The Associated Press that the man acknowledged posting the phony stadium threat as part of a "writing duel" with a man from the Brownsville, Texas, area to see who could post the scariest threat.

The Texas man corroborated the story, the official said.

How stupid do you have to be to engage in a "writing duel" to post the most frightening threat on the Internet?

Brahm is very, very stupid.

When are people going to realize that what they post on the Internet is actually accessible to others?

When are they going to learn that deleting something doesn't make it go away?

There is a cyber-trail that can be traced.

I think Brahm deserves more than a slap on the wrist.

What did his juvenile Internet game cost taxpayers?

Would Brahm run down the aisles of the grocery store that employs him and yell, "Fire"?

He'd be on the fast track to be out of a job.

The Internet does not provide the anonymity that some (many) people think.

"javness" is just as real and just as responsible for his actions as Jake Brahm.

_______________________________

Here is more about "normal guy" Brahm.

The suburban Milwaukee man accused of posting a phony Internet threat to blow up N-F-L stadiums is described as artsy and quiet.

Twenty-year-old Jake Brahm is a clerk at Outpost Natural Foods, a co-op around the corner from his house in Wauwatosa.

A store manager Jeremy Layman says he seems to be a "normal guy" who made it to work on time and wasn't a concern.

Mallory McKenney graduated the year before Brahm at Wauwatosa East High School. McKenney says Brahm was artsy, quiet and friendly.

Federal prosecutors say Brahm posted his threat about 40 times on various Web sites.

Sorry.

"Normal guys" don't post dirty bomb threats 40 TIMES.

40 TIMES!

That's more than a harmless little Internet game.

______________________________

UPDATE:

Bad news for Brahm.

A Wisconsin man arrested last fall in connection with prank Internet warnings of terrorist attacks against NFL stadiums has been indicted in Newark, N.J., on a federal charge of conveying the false information.

Jake J. Brahm of Wauwatosa, was charged Wednesday on accusations he posted threats to detonate “dirty bombs” at seven stadiums that had games on Oct. 22.

Authorities said his actions wasted homeland security efforts and likened them to the “Internet version of yelling fire in a crowded theater.”

However, Brahm’s lawyer, Walter A. Lesnevich, said the incident was “greatly blown out of proportion.”

“This was a stupid mistake by a kid that nobody took seriously,” Lesnevich said. The 22-year-old Brahm will plead not guilty, the lawyer said.

Wrong.

It was a "stupid mistake" by a MAN that lots of people took seriously.

javness: The Milwaukee Connection

Here we go again...

Does it seem like Wisconsin has more than its share of weirdoes?

Yesterday, the big news was that seven NFL stadiums were being targeted with dirty bombs.

Although the threat wasn't considered credible, Homeland Security put the NFL on notice "out of an abundance of caution."

Milwaukee's NBC affiliate Today's TMJ4 has video of the story.

At the end of TMJ4's Wednesday 10:00 pm newscast, they had information that a Milwaukee man was being questioned by the FBI.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel has more:

The FBI interviewed a Milwaukee resident today who officials believe was involved in posting Internet threats about dirty bomb attacks on NFL football stadiums this weekend. The threats appeared to be phony.

The person, described only as a young adult, did not appear to have any ties to terrorist groups, according to a Washington law enforcement official who spoke on condition of anonymity because the investigation was ongoing.

In Milwaukee, Mike Johnson, a special agent with that FBI office, made the following statement:

"An individual came forward and provided information to the Milwaukee division of the FBI about the threat against the NFL stadiums. The government still believes this threat is not credible. As this is an ongoing matter, we are not be able to provide any additonal information at this time."

The AP reports that the threat appeared on a website called "The Friend Society." Today, I tried unsuccessfully to go to the site. For obvious reasons, it's gone.

Last night, it was being swamped with hits. I did get to it briefly, a home page with a black background and links printed in red. I didn't click on any of the links, but I believe the AP's description of the site as connecting to various online forums and off-color cartoons is a fair characterization.

The URL for "The Friend Society" is (was) http://thefucksociety.com/.

I think that's sort of a tip off right there about the sort of site it is.

It certainly appears that the dirty bomb threat was posted by some goof on a weird forum and completely lacks credibility.

At this point, it's not clear whether or not the Milwaukee "young adult" is "javness."

It's possible that the Milwaukee individual came forward with information about the threat but was not responsible for it.

I hope so.

I hope the Wisconsinite gets credit for proving the threat to be a hoax or a sick joke rather than being its source.

Wisconsin doesn't need to add another name to its list of nationally-known nutjobs.

_______________________________

The latest:

Internet threats of "dirty bomb" attacks at NFL stadiums this weekend were a hoax, the FBI and Department of Homeland Security said Thursday.

The FBI made the announcement after agents questioned a 20-year-old Milwaukee man in an effort to determine who made the threats, which were posted on a Web site last week.

"This is a hoax," said Special Agent Richard Kolko, a spokesman at the FBI's Washington headquarters. A joint statement from the FBI and Homeland Security said fans "should be reassured of their security as they continue to attend sporting events this weekend."

A law enforcement official in Washington, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the case is still under investigation, said the determination was made based on a computer search and questioning of the Milwaukee man, whose comments led them to determine that he was involved.

No decision has been made yet on whether charges will be filed, the official said.

..."From the information we have, we believe he was involved to some extent, but we don't know at what level," said FBI agent Douglas E. Porrini. He added: "That person was released, but we're not saying that he won't be charged."

There has to be consequences for posting such threats on the Internet.

I hope those involved are charged. There's no question that they should be.

Investigating threats costs money. The fears that result from such threats have economic repercussions.

It's no joke.

Doofuses on the Internet should not be able to post threats with impunity, whether the threat involves bombing a stadium filled with tens of thousands of people or harming an individual.

javness

How does one recognize the end of Ramadan?

One way is to threaten to detonate dirty bombs at NFL stadiums.

What a wonderful way to close out the holy month!

WASHINGTON -- An Internet message claiming that seven NFL stadiums will be hit with dirty bombs this weekend was met with "strong skepticism" Wednesday by government security officials.

With nothing to indicate an imminent attack, local authorities and stadium owners were alerted "out of an abundance of caution."

Dated Oct. 12, the posting was part of an ongoing conversation titled "New Attack on America Be Afraid." It appeared on a Web site called "The Friend Society," which links to various online forums and off-color cartoons.

The message said trucks would deliver radiological bombs to stadiums in New York, Miami, Atlanta, Seattle, Houston, Oakland and Cleveland _ and that Osama bin Laden would later claim responsibility.

...Officials were made aware of the Web posting on Oct. 16. The threat was timed to be carried out on Sunday, Oct. 22, marking the final day in Mecca of Ramadan, the Islamic holy month.

"The death toll will approach 100,000 from the initial blasts and countless other fatalities will later occur as result from radioactive fallout," the posting read.

It said al-Qaida would automatically be blamed for the nearly simultaneous attacks and predicted, "Later, through al-Jazeera, bin Laden will issue a video message claiming responsibility for what he dubbed 'America's Hiroshima.'"

The posting noted that all but one of the stadiums _ Atlanta _ are open-air arenas, adding: "Due to the open air, the radiological fallout will destroy those not killed in the initial explosion." The retractable roof in Houston has been closed for all games so far this season.

...Authorities traced the site's Internet provider back to Voxel Dot Net Inc., which has support and engineering staff based in Troy, N.Y. A man who answered the phone at Voxel, who declined to give his name, said he was unaware of the posted threat on the Web site and refused further comment.

The author of the threats, posted at 9:31 p.m. EDT on Oct. 12, identified himself online as "javness."

"In the aftermath civil wars will erupt across the world, both in the Middle East and within the United States," javness wrote. "Global economies will screech to a halt. General chaos will rule."

I don't think so.

"Javness" is probably a geeky teenager, or an even geekier adult.

I hope he is tracked, apprehended, charged, and punished for making the threat.

I'm sure this case is a hoax, but Ramadan does traditionally go out with a bang.

This is how some Muslims celebrated the end of the holy month of Ramadan last year.

Millions of the faithful spilled into the streets, united by their hate for Israel.

TEHRAN, Iran -- Iran's ultraconservative president — spurning international outrage over his remarks about Israel — joined more than a million demonstrators who flooded the streets of the capital and other major cities Friday to back his call for the destruction of the Jewish state.

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad stood fast behind his assertion that Israel should be wiped off the map and repeated the call during the nationwide protests Friday, the Muslim day of prayer.

...Marching alongside the protesters, the 47-year-old former mayor of Tehran and one-time Republican Guard commander renewed his criticism of the West.

"They become upset when they hear any voice of truth-seeking. They think they are the absolute rulers of the world," he said during the al-Quds — or Jerusalem — Day protest, which was among the largest since they were first held in 1979 after Shiite Muslim clerics took power in Iran.

His fellow marchers carried placards reading "Death to Israel, death to America."

...Some demonstrators chanted "Israel is approaching its death" and wore white shrouds in a symbolic gesture expressing readiness to die for their cause.

A resolution was read at the end of the rallies backing "the position declared by the president that the Zionist regime must be wiped out."

...Protests attracted at least 100,000 in each of Iran's eight largest cities, according to AP reporters. State television said millions of people assembled throughout the country. Major rallies also were held in other Middle Eastern countries.

...Iran's seven state-run TV stations devoted coverage Friday to programs condemning the Jewish state and praising the Palestinian resistance since the 1948 creation of Israel.

...After Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini toppled the pro-Western Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi in 1979, he declared the last Friday of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan as an international day of struggle against Israel and for the liberation of Jerusalem. The founder of the Islamic regime had also called for Israel's destruction.

The last day of the "holy" month of Ramadan is devoted to rallies calling for the annihilation of Israel.

How holy!

I don't see how dirty bombs at NFL stadiums relate to the destruction of Israel, but there's a lot about militant Islam that I don't understand.

I think "javness" will regret what he did.

And hopefully, the Packers will beat the Dolphins on the Sunday.