Ohio woman charged with interstate bomb threats to Mississippi officials amid death investigation
Michelle Francine Edwards of Cincinnati has been indicted for making 29 bomb threats to Mississippi government offices investigating the death of teenager Nolan Wells, facing up to five years in prison.
A federal complaint alleges that Michelle Francine Edwards, a resident of Cincinnati, placed 29 threatening calls to the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office and the George County Chancery Clerk’s Office in Mississippi on July 23. The calls, made from a blocked number and using a *67 mask, warned officials that a bomb was present and instructed them not to go outside.
The threats prompted a lockdown and a bomb sweep involving K-9 units. Investigators traced the calls to Edwards after obtaining phone records from service providers and matching cell-tower data to her address.
"The threats triggered an immediate building lockdown and a bomb sweep with K-9 units," investigators said.
Edwards has been charged with threatening communication in interstate commerce, a felony that carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release. The alleged threats occurred while local authorities were conducting a probe into the July 6 death of 18-year-old Nolan Wells, who disappeared during a Fourth of July boating trip.
Authorities have also charged another individual, Joseph Alfredo Vasquez Dumarce, for sending threatening messages to a local judge connected to the case. Both investigations remain ongoing.