Pittsburgh Alum Arrested for Bomb Threats, Threats Continue - East Idaho News
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Pittsburgh Alum Arrested for Bomb Threats, Threats Continue

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wtae pitt bomb threat 120412 wg?  SQUARESPACE CACHEVERSION=1334253812182ABC News(PITTSBURGH) — Bomb threats to the University of Pittsburgh kept the campus on edge Wednesday night and Thursday morning despite an arrest of a possible suspect.

More than 50 threats have been made against the university and its officials since mid-February, causing constant disruptions to classes and activities on campus along with evacuation of campus buildings and officials’ homes.

On Wednesday afternoon, the Pittsburgh University police department and Allegheny County Police arrested Mark Lee Krangle, 65, of Hudson, N.Y., as he arrived to the Pittsburgh airport on a flight from New York on charges of harassment and terroristic threats.

Krangle allegedly sent threatening emails to four professors at the university, and wrote that he was coming to Pittsburgh to get his theories about the bomb threats out to the public, according to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.

Hours after Krangle was arrested, however, the university received two more bomb threats. Around 10 p.m. on Wednesday evening, students were evacuated from a residence hall after a threat was emailed to ABC News’ Pittsburgh affiliate, WTAE, saying “Tell Pitt cops – bombs are in the Litchfield Towers and in the William Pitt Union building on campus.”

Around 5 a.m. Thursday, five more residence halls were evacuated due to threats. The university said Wednesday the investigation into the threats is ongoing.

Pittsburgh University police were unavailable for comments Thursday morning. The FBI and Pittsburgh police department are assisting in the investigation, according to a police department spokeswoman.

Criminal records show that Krangle was convicted in 2003 of threatening to kidnap, a felony offense for which he served prison time and was ordered to undergo psychiatric therapy. The court documents from the case are sealed.

On his Facebook page, Krangle claims he received his Ph.D. from Pitt, and offers a link to an e-book he authored about his role in the Jimmy Carter administration. He notes that the federal case against him in 2003 was caused by a letter he wrote to ABC TV, alleging that he had information about the 9/11 attacks before they happened.

Krangle, in his recent Facebook posts, tied the Pitt bomb threats to the Occupy Wall Street and Occupy Pittsburgh movement.

A $50,000 reward has been offered by the university to anyone who can provide information leading to arrests in the case.  

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