JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A South Carolina man was sentenced Wednesday to two years in federal prison for threatening to blow up a Jacksonville abortion clinic.
Rodney Allen, 43, pleaded guilty in June to one count of intimidating and interfering with the employees of an abortion clinic by making a bomb threat and one count of making false statements to a Special Agent with the FBI, according to the Department of Justice.
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“The Department of Justice will prosecute anyone who threatens to blow up people and places to the fullest extent of the law,” said Assistant Attorney General Eric Dreiband. “These kinds of ghastly criminal threats unlawfully and unjustly injure innocent people. Violence and threats of violence have no place in this country.”
According to court documents, Allen called the clinic Aug. 29, 2019, saying someone was going to blow it up. He also called several times that day in what authorities described as an effort to disrupt the clinic’s operations. Using phone records, the FBI identified Allen as the caller. He denied making those calls.
“Threats of violence to healthcare facilities or their employees are serious matters,” said U.S. Attorney Maria Chapa Lopez for the Middle District of Florida. “Thanks to the quick response and diligence by our local and federal law enforcement partners, this case was investigated thoroughly and brought to a successful conclusion.”