SA man charged after claiming he paid someone to spread coronavirus at grocery stores
Threat was unfounded, investigators say
Fares Sabawi, Digital Journalist
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SAN ANTONIO – FBI agents arrested a San Antonio man after he posted on Facebook, claiming he paid someone to spread COVID-19 at grocery stores.
Christopher Charles Perez, 39, was arrested Tuesday afternoon on suspicion of perpetrating a coronavirus-related hoax.
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Perez posted the threat “because he was trying to deter people from visiting the stores, purportedly in order to prevent the spread of the virus,” according to a news release from the United States Attorney’s Office in San Antonio.
The screenshot quickly caught the attention of the Southwest Texas Fusion Center, a team of law enforcement individuals who monitor online threats. The tip was then sent to the FBI for further investigation.
“To be clear, the alleged threat was false; no one spread coronavirus at grocery stores, according to investigators," the news release said.
Perez faces up to five years in federal prison if convicted.
COVID-19, the respiratory disease caused by the new virus, stands for coronavirus disease 2019. The disease first appeared in late 2019 in Wuhan, China, but spread around the world in early 2020, causing the World Health Organization to declare a pandemic in March.