Stetson University student Brian Ghalili, 18, was arrested Jan. 21 after Stetson University alerted authorities to a social-media post he allegedly made threatening to detonate explosives at the White House: “There’s a bomb straped [sic] to my chest rigged with 4 IEDs. I am currently located at 38.8977° N, 77.0365° W. You have 13 hours to stop me from killing ‘innocent people.’ Good luck sheep.” That’s the message Ghalili allegedly posted on his Snapchat account at 9:15 a.m. Jan. 15. The coordinates in the message are those of the White House in Washington, D.C.
The DeLand Police Department alerted other agencies, including the FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force, City of DeLand Public Information Officer Ava Hanner told The Beacon.
“The student was quickly located and taken into custody by members of the FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force, Volusia Sheriff’s Office, and the Daytona Beach Shores Department of Public Safety in his parent’s condominium in Daytona Beach Shores without incident,” Hanner said.
Initially, police were unable to locate Ghalili at his Stetson University dorm, DeLand Police reported. He was not in Washington, D.C., but, police reported, at his family’s Daytona Beach Shores condominium.
According to the charging affidavit, Ghalili told authorities his social-media post was a “joke.”
The affidavit continues, “During the contact Ghalili was unable to provided [sic] any additional reasons for the post other than he has a dark sense of humor.”
Ghalili was charged with Threat to Discharge a Destructive Device and is being held at the Volusia County Branch Jail with no bond.
