http://www.nydailynews.com/news/nat...eatening-kill-cnn-employees-article-1.3773389
A 19-year-old Michigan man was busted for threatening to unleash a mass killing at CNN’s Atlanta headquarters during a string of harassing phone calls, records show.
Brandon Griesemer badgered the cable news network with nearly two dozen profanity-laced rants from Jan. 9 and 10 vowing to make the 730 mile trek to Georgia to kill their employees, according to criminal complaint filed Friday in the Eastern District of Michigan.
“Fake news. I’m coming to gun you all down. F--k you, f--kin’ n-----s,” the teen identified as Griesemer allegedly said, using President Trump’s anti-free press rhetoric.
He called the operator back three minutes later with another threat.
He told the operator his colleagues should kill themselves because he was on his way to Atlanta to “gun the f--kin’ CNN cast down,” before hanging up again.
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The calls prompted CNN to hire a private investigator to track the source of the threats. The investigator, using a law enforcement database of phone numbers, found a number linked to Griesemer's father in the Detroit suburb of Novi and gave it a ring. He then encountered CNN's mystery caller and recorded their conversation.
Despite the internal probe, the phone calls continued for another 24 hours. During which, Griesemer disparaged Jews and spewed violent rants at a tense whisper, records state.
“I’m coming for you CNN. I’m smarter than you. More powerful than you. I have more guns that you. More manpower,” he said in another call. “Your cast is about to get gunned down in a matter of hours.”
One of his final calls claimed Griesemer had amassed a team of killers to attack the newsroom.
“I have a gun and I am coming to Georgia right now to go to the CNN headquarters to f--king gun ever single last one of you. I have a team of people. It’s going to be great, man.”
“You gotta get prepared for this one, buddy,” he told the operator.
Special Agent Sean Callaghan based his case on the work of CNN’s private investigator, documents show. The path to identifying Griesemer as the culprit led to a September incident where Ann Arbor cops confronting him for calling a local mosque with disparaging remarks about Muslims.
Police in the city, about 30 miles from Novi, confronted his parents about the call. His mother revealed she knew he had called a mosque, identified in court papers as the Islamic Center of Ann Arbor.
That same day, Griesener called local authorities in an attempt to explain himself.
“He was angry at the time of the call," those documents state.
Griesemer now faces charges of interstate communications with intent to extort, intent to injure. He was released on a $10,000 bond and ordered not to contact the network.
“Don’t be making any threats to anybody,” the judge told Griesener in court.
CNN issued a statement as news of the threats surfaced saying they had taken precautions to protect their employees.
"We take any threats to CNN employees or workplaces, around the world, extremely seriously,” the statement read. “This one is no exception. We have been in touch with local and federal law enforcement throughout, and have taken all necessary measures to ensure the safety of our people."
