Man Accused Of False Claims About Boston School Shooting

BOSTON – A Quincy man was arrested and was charged in connection with sending a letter that threatened an armed attack at a South Boston school last year, according to an indictment unsealed Thursday, the U.S. Attorney’s Office announced.

Clebio P. De Lima, 43, a Brazilian national living without documents in Quincy, was arrested and charged in an indictment with two counts of making false statements to federal authorities.

De Lima is scheduled to appear in federal court in Boston.

According to the charging documents, in February 2018, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)'s Boston Office got an unsigned letter, handwritten in Portuguese, saying that someone named “Mario” was going to carry out an attack at a South Boston school. The letter said Mario had purchased two firearms and that he was looking to buy more.

“I invite you to take action, I trust in you. Thank you for the great security of this country,” reads the conclusion of the letter authorities say.

Investigators from the FBI Boston joint terrorism task force determined that the allegations in the letter were false. During an interview with agents in September 2018, agents said De Lima falsely denied any knowledge about the letter.

It's not immediately clear how authorities traced the letter back to De Lima.

De Lima could face up to five years in prison, one year of supervised release and a $250,000 fine.

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[Editor's Note: This article has been changed to correctly reflect the charging agency]

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Photo by Jenna Fisher/Patch Staff