A former Northeastern University lab manager has been convicted staging a hoax explosion on campus in Boston and then lie to a federal agent about what happened.
Jason Duhaime, 46, of San Antonio, Texas, was convicted on three counts by a federal jury on Friday. He faces up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 for each violation.
Two attorneys representing Duhamie withdrew from the case in January, court records show. A public defender who replaced them was not immediately available for comment Saturday.
Duhaime was working as the university’s new technology manager and director of the Immersive Media Lab. In September 2022, he called university police to say he had collected several packages from a mailroom, including two Pelican hard plastic cases, and that when he opened one of the cases, it exploded, sending sharp objects flying out and injuring his arms.
Duhaime’s 911 call prompted a large police response. They evacuated the area and called the bomb squad.
He showed police a letter he said he found in the suitcase, in which he claimed the lab wanted to make people live in virtual reality and was secretly working with Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and the US government.
“In the case you got today, we could have planted explosives, but not this time!!!” the letter read, according to court documents. “Pay attention!!! You have 2 months to shut down operations or else!!!!!”
But Duhaime’s story quickly unraveled, the FBI said. They found nothing in the suitcases and noted that the letter appeared to be in pristine condition. The FBI said Duhaime had superficial wounds to his arms but no damage to his shirt sleeves. And when officers searched Duhaime’s computer, they found a copy of the letter in a backup folder that he had written a few hours before calling 911.
“Bomb hoaxes like the one the suspect here fabricated have real-life consequences. Communities are frightened, law enforcement is distracted from other important duties, and there are significant financial consequences,” Acting U.S. Attorney Joshua Levy said in a statement. “As we experience a surge in bomb hoaxes in schools, houses of worship and other gathering places, we will work closely with our local, state and federal partners to hold accountable anyone who tries to sow fear and suffering in our community.”
Northeastern, a private university, has more than 18,000 undergraduate students and 22,000 graduate students.
Duhaime is expected to be sentenced on October 2.
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Perry reported from Meredith, New Hampshire.