A former Northeastern University lab director was convicted of faking an explosion on the Boston campus and lying to a federal agent about what happened.
Jason Duhaime, 46, of San Antonio, Texas, was found guilty on Friday by a federal grand jury of three counts. He faces up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 on each count.
Two attorneys representing Duhaime withdrew from the case in January, according to court documents. As of Saturday, the public defender who replaced them could not be reached for comment.
Duhaime was working as the new technology manager and director of the Immersive Media Lab. In September 2022, he called university police to say he had picked up several packages from a mailroom, including two hard plastic Pelican cases, and that when he opened one of them, it exploded, sending sharp objects flying and injuring his arms.
Duhaime’s 911 call prompted a response from law enforcement, who evacuated the area and called in the bomb squad.
Duhaime showed police a letter he said he found inside the case, which said the lab was trying to make people live in a virtual reality world and was secretly working with Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and with the US government.
“In the case you received today, we could have placed explosives, but not this time!!!” the note read, according to court documents. “Keep that in mind!!! They have two months to cancel the operations, or they will see!!!!!”
But Duhaime’s story soon fell apart, according to the FBI. The agency found nothing in the cases and noted that the letter appeared to be in optimal condition. The FBI said Duhaime had superficial wounds on his arms, but there was no damage to the sleeves of his shirt. And when officers searched Duhaime’s computer, they found, in a backup folder, a copy of the letter he had written a few hours before calling 911.
“Hoax bombings, like the one the defendant concocted, have real-life consequences. Communities are left in fear, law enforcement personnel are diverted from other important duties, and there are significant financial repercussions,” Joshua Levy, the prosecutor in charge of the case, said in a statement. “As we experience a surge of hoax bombings at schools, places of worship, and other gathering sites, we will work closely with our local, state, and federal counterparts to hold accountable anyone who seeks to instill fear and unrest in our community.”
Privately funded Northeastern University has more than 18,000 undergraduate students and 22,000 graduate students.
Duhaime will be sentenced on October 2.
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Perry reported from Meredith, New Hampshire.
