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Queens Man Falsely Accused Ex-Wife Of Terrorism
By
Scott Heins
Published Jul 26, 2014
Modified Jul 26, 2014
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By
Scott Heins
Published Jul 26, 2014
Modified Jul 26, 2014
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A Queens man confessed to dialing 911 earlier this month to falsely report that his ex-wife, who was on an inbound flight from India, was a terrorist, participating in a "plot" and traveling under a fake visa. Jacob Thomas, 51, made two separate emergency calls on July 5th, in which he claimed that his estranged ex, Shakeela Saraswathi, was involved in terrorism, the Daily News reports.
Thomas later confessed that his claims were completely false, but not before Saraswathi was stopped for questioning by FBI agents as soon as her Qatar Airways flight landed at JFK. The Post reports that authorities searched and questioned the woman only to find no evidence of terrorist ties or dangerous intent.
In a Brooklyn federal court complaint released Friday, Thomas acknowledged that the terror alert calls were in fact baseless accusations and apologized for wasting everyone's time. According to the News, the Queens resident was released on a $50,000 bond and must seek mental health treatment in the immediate future.
Tagged
911 call
angry husband
jfk airport
terror threats
Scott Heins
Scott Heins is a freelance photo and video journalist based in New York City, and a frequent contributor to Gothamist + WNYC. His work often centers around labor rights, housing, and policing. In 2018-2019 he traveled to four states while covering a wave of public school teachers strikes, with work featured in The New York Times, The Intercept, Getty Images, Splinter, and Bloomberg Photos. Scott is a dues-paying member of the National Writers Union's Freelance Solidarity Project.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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