LA Mayor speaks about the 2028 Olympics
Mayor La Karen Bass talks about the challenges and opportunities the 2028 Olympics will raise in Los Angeles.
The former deputy Los Angeles mayor agreed to plead guilty to a felony charge after mistakenly reporting the threat of a bomb at city hall to law enforcement in 2024, federal prosecutors said.
Brian K. Williams, 61, of Pasadena, California, said in a news release on May 22, the US Lawyer’s Office for the Central District of California. The charges say it was sentenced to a 10-year statutory prison in federal prison.
Prosecutors said Williams posed a bomb threat to city hall in October 2024 while he was in office. At the time of the incident, he was the vice mayor of Public Security.
In December 2024, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass’ office said FBI agents had searched Williams’ home as part of an investigation into the bomb threat. The Los Angeles Police Department said the “source of threat” from Williams was probably the case.
Police said the investigation was referred to the FBI in collaboration with Williams. After the search, a Bus spokesman said Williams was placed on administrative leave immediately.
“Not only did Mr. Williams, the deputy mayor of Public Security in Los Angeles, not only did he betray Los Angeles residents by creating a bomb threat, but he also betrayed the integrity of the office itself.” “Government officials are bound by elevated standards as we rely on them to protect the city. We have settled Mr. Williams’ responsibility for his inexplicable actions.”
Williams is expected to make his first appearance in federal court in downtown Los Angeles in the coming weeks, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Former-LA Deputy Mayor used voice application for fake bomb threats
Prosecutors provided no motive for the false bomb threat, but detailed Williams’ process to hide the origins of the threat.
Williams was attending a virtual meeting on October 3, 2024. According to the petition agreement, the phones were called by the city using voice applications on mobile phones. He then left the virtual meeting and called the Chief of Staff of the Los Angeles Police Department.
Williams reported to police that he received a call from an unknown man who threatened to bomb Los Angeles City Hall, the judiciary agreement said. About ten minutes later, Williams texted Bass and several other high-ranking city officials saying he was threatened around 10:48am local time.
“The male caller said, “He’s tired of the support of the city in Israel and decided to put a bomb at city hall. It might be in Rotunda,” the text message reads. “I immediately contacted the LAPD Chief of Staff. They will do a search of the building and send a number of officers to determine if anyone else has been threatened.”
Officers then searched city hall, but no suspicious packages or devices were found, according to the legal agreement. Prosecutors said Williams later explained the call to police and recorded the next call on the city.
“In fact, Williams had not received such a call and was threatening the threat of a bomb himself,” the prosecutor said. “In fact, that incoming call record was a call Williams put on himself from the Google Voice application on his personal mobile phone.”
Prosecutors pointed out that there was no point in time Williams intended to carry out the threat.
Bus announced the appointment of Williams in February 2023, according to a news release. He took on the role after a stint as executive director of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Civil Monitoring Board. He previously served as deputy mayor under former mayor James Hearn and worked as a special city attorney at the city’s lawyers office.
Contributor: Michael Loria, USA Today
