DA Seeks Help IDing 'Person of Interest' in Courthouse Bomb Threats

Photos 1 and 2: The man who made the 8:32 a.m. call. Photos 3 -5: The man who made the 8:06 a.m. call. (Photos courtesy of the Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office)

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Montgomery County District Attorney Risa Vetri Ferman and Sheriff Russell Bono are seeking the public’s help in identifying a “person of interest” in last week’s courthouse bomb threats.

The Norristown Police Department received a phone call at 8:32 a.m. Thursday, Jan. 29, from an unidentified male caller, who told authorities that there were “explosives and bombs” at the Montgomery County Courthouse in Norristown, the District Attorney’s Office said. The call came from a payphone at the 7-Eleven at Main Street and Montgomery Avenue in West Norriton Township, authorities said.

Additionally, a 911 call from a mobile phone was received at 8:35 a.m. Thursday, Jan. 29, by the Montgomery County Department of Public Safety, the District Attorney’s Office said. An unidentified male caller said there were explosives at the courthouse. At the time of the call, the mobile phone was at Main and Hamilton streets in Norristown, authorities said.

The threats prompted the evacuation of the courthouse, and disrupted the swearing-in of new county commissioner Valerie Arkoosh. The courthouse was searched, and no explosives were found.

The Montgomery County Detective Bureau opened a criminal investigation into the two calls, the District Attorney’s Office said. Authorities obtained surveillance footage from the 7-Eleven, and discovered that the same man who made the 8:32 a.m. call appears to have made a call at 8:06 a.m.

Anyone with any information about the man’s identity is asked to call the Montgomery County Detective Bureau at 610-278-3368 during business hours, or at 610-275-1222 after hours.