Prosecutors file 12 charges against Santa Clara man accused of threatening Bay Area senator
Source: San Jose Mercury News
Prosecutors filed a dozen charges Friday against a Santa Clara man accused of threatening to kill a Bay Area senator after the discovery this week of a weapons cache and bomb-making materials at his home.
Everett Fred Basham, 45, was charged with 10 felonies: criminal threats with an armed enhancement, two counts of possessing a destructive device, two counts of possessing materials with intent to make an explosive, one count each of forging and possessing a fake driver's license and three counts of illegally possessing an assault weapon. He was also charged with two misdemeanor counts for allegedly carrying a concealed and loaded firearm in a vehicle.
State Sen. Leland Yee, D-San Francisco, said Thursday that Basham sent him an email about four weeks ago threatening to "assassinate" him out of objection to his proposals to tighten state gun laws.
Among the assault weapons Basham was said to own include a Barret 416 high-powered rifle and a Franchi SPAS 12 combat shotgun. One of the explosives counts claims he illegally modified a bird bomb: a firecracker round with a delayed explosion typically used to scare off birds gathering in an undesired location like an airport runway. The modifications Basham made were not disclosed.
Read more: http://www.mercurynews.com/rss/ci_22599542
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Everett Fred Basham[/center]
Posted: 4:30 p.m. Friday, Feb. 15, 2013
Santa Clara man charged with threatening state Senator Yee
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The 12-count complaint states that Basham made the threat while he was armed with a Barrett .416-caliber rifle and also possessed a Franchi SPAS-12 rifle and other illegal assault weapons with detachable magazines and center-fire cartridges.
Basham is also accused of having a "modified bird bomb" that was greater than .60-caliber, which is a felony, prosecutors said. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives describes bird bombs as explosive pest control devices.
Basham also allegedly had other materials with the intent to make explosives, prosecutors said.
He is further alleged to have a forged driver's license he intended to use to commit a forgery and carried a loaded 9mm Sig Sauer pistol while in a vehicle in a public place, prosecutors said.
Basham allegedly emailed death threats four weeks ago to Yee. The state senator said in a statement that the email said, "If I did not cease our legislative efforts to stop gun violence that he would assassinate me in or around the Capitol."
More:
http://www.ktvu.com/news/news/crime-law/santa-clara-man-charged-threatening-senator/nWQhq/
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SANTA CLARA: Man suspected in bombing plot appears in court
News video:
http://www.ktvu.com/videos/news/santa-clara-man-suspected-in-bombing-plot-appears/vqsxB/
