Prison term levied for bomb threat

  • Published
  • By Brandice J. Armstrong and Darren D. Heusel
  • 72nd Air Base Wing Public Affairs
An Oklahoma City man who phoned in a bomb threat to Tinker Air Force Base in December was sentenced Aug. 30 to four years in prison, federal prosecutors announced.
   United States District Judge Joe Heaton also ordered Neil Jason Wilfong, 35, to pay $475,631 in restitution, which was primarily the result of lost employee work time due to the evacuation of buildings and other areas of the Oklahoma City Air Logistics Center after the threat.
   According to John C. Richter, United States attorney for the Western District of Oklahoma, the case was the result of a joint investigation conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Air Force Office of Special Investigations, 72nd Security Forces Squadron investigators at Tinker and the Oklahoma City Police Department.
   "As we approach the anniversary of the terrible events of Sept. 11, 2001, this case is a reminder that we must and will take every threat to our national security seriously - particularly when it is directed at one of our nation's most important military installations," said Mr. Richter, who prosecuted the case.
   "The stiff sentence imposed by the court sends a clear message that anyone who wishes to use bomb threats to get attention will be aggressively prosecuted, punished severely, and be held financially responsible for the trouble they caused," he added.
   According to court documents, Mr. Wilfong phoned the base around 7 a.m. on Dec. 15 asking to speak to his mother, who was working in Bldg. 3001.
When he was told his mother was unavailable, Mr. Wilfong "resorted to threats of violence" telling the person answering the phone there was a bomb in the building.
   A civilian from the 748th Combat Sustainment Group received the threatening phone call and followed instructions on a standard how-to-handle a bomb threat card to the letter.
   Criminal investigators from the base and surrounding area immediately sprang into action and responded to the threat.
   "Because we live in an environment that faces concerted and persistent actions from enemies sworn to destroy our nation and way of life, we take any threat we receive very seriously," said 72nd Air Base Wing and Tinker installation Commander Col. Mark Correll. "The immediate response to this threat is a credit to the experienced and prepared personnel who worked in concert to bring this case to justice."
   Security forces personnel evacuated Bldg. 3001 in about 30 minutes and military working dogs that specialize in explosive detection were deployed to search the area. Within two-and-a-half hours, the building was secured; leading officials to believe no harm would ensue.
   "I wish to commend the Tinker security and law enforcement officials for a prompt response to safeguard the Tinker work force and for their investigative efforts in this case, which led to this successful prosecution," Mr. Richter said.
   During the search for Mr. Wilfong, authorities learned that he had gone to his girlfriend's house, where he was seen carrying a crossbow. He was arrested by officers from the Oklahoma City Police Department a short time later.
   The five-man team that make up the base Criminal Investigations unit at Tinker interviewed witnesses, reviewed phone records, and coordinated with the FBI and Oklahoma City Police Department to arrest Mr. Wilfong.
   "The intelligence exchanged between local and national law enforcement, and the actions of individual work area supervisors ensured a rapid response," said Tech. Sgt. Dusty Maugh, 72nd Security Forces Squadron Intelligence Unit noncommissioned officer-in-charge.
   Mr. Wilfong is one of two individuals who have been arrested for making threats against Tinker in the past two years. The last threat was called in to the OC-ALC in late 2005. That caller was also caught.
   The latest threat cost Tinker an estimated $1.8 million in lost production time, lost revenue, lost wages and lost business, officials said.
   "Let this be a deterrent," Sgt. Maugh said. "We have a 100 percent success rate in holding offenders accountable, that's a fact. If you make the threat, you will be caught. No one has gotten away thus far."