Texas man sentenced to 15 months in prison for posting Covid-19 hoax on social media

[NurseJackie]

Source: CNN

(snip)

Evidence showed Christopher Charles Perez, 40, posted two threatening messages on Facebook in April 2020, falsely claiming he paid someone infected with Covid-19 to "lick items at grocery stores in the San Antonio area to scare people away" from the businesses, the US Attorney's Office in the Western District of Texas said in a news release Monday.

Perez was found guilty of two counts for violating a federal law that criminalizes false information and hoaxes related to biological weapons, prosecutors said. The Southwest Texas Fusion Center (SWTFC) received an online tip on April 5, 2020, of a screenshot of the post, and the FBI in San Antonio investigated the matter, according to the news release.

"The threat was false. Perez did not pay someone to intentionally spread coronavirus at grocery stores, according to investigators and Perez's own admissions," prosecutors said in the news release.

(SNIP)

Perez's fabricated social media posts came at a time when Covid-19 had just begun widely spreading in the US -- shutting down many non-essential businesses and upending life across the country and around the globe.In addition to the 15-month prison sentence, Perez must also pay a $1,000 fine, prosecutors said.

Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2021/10/06/us/texas-man-sentenced-covid-hoax/index.html

[sheshe2]

1. Texas, hmm.

Texas hates vaccinations… Wonder how long it will take him to catch Covid in prison.

[Traildogbob]

2. Maybe

He can lick some items in prison for fun.

[usaf-vet]

7. Who's "fun"?

[reACTIONary]

15. Bazinga! nt

[lostnfound]

3. 15 months for two Facebook messages??? Damage to *business* matters

Damage to people does not seem to matter as much.
I’m amazed, 15 months.

[wnylib]

6. That's my reaction, too. He was

prosecuted for hurting those businesses. If he had spread covid to people deliberately, without directly harming businesses, he probably would not have faced any charges.

[Grins]

16. And $1,000...?

How much did those businesses lose…?

[SCantiGOP]

4. I don't disagree with the sentence, but.....

15 months for this, compared to home detention or a few weeks in jail for storming the Capitol, does not seem right.

[Mickju]

5. I was just about to post the same.

So this is worse than participating in an insurrection. What a screwed up justice system we have.

[IronLionZion]

8. These people are disgusting

and deplorable

[BlueJac]

9. Fuck them all

[Effete Snob]

10. "The threat was false."

In other words, he should have paid someone to do that. Then, he could not be convicted of falsely reporting it.

[ffr]

11. But if your intend is to kill the VP of the US, & your mob kills police in the process of that act

you get 45 days of house arrest? And it takes nearly a year for the legal system to catch up to you and your 'overthrow the govment' leaders are still running around free as a bird and their congressional members are still allowed to form policy about the punishments given for trying to overthrow the govment...

Our legal system needs an overhaul and soon!

[Snackshack]

12. It's amazing how fast the

Justice system is capable of working….

[bucolic_frolic]

13. Um, excuse me, "false information and hoaxes related to biological weapons"

Hydroxychloroquine, bleach, UV light come to mind.

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

14. Guess he thought why should Florida man have all the fun.

Last edited Thu Oct 7, 2021, 02:08 PM - Edit history (1)

[NurseJackie]

17. Maybe he was originally from Florida.

14. Guess he though why should Florida man have all the fun.

That's funny!