LOS ANGELES
A San Fernando Valley man was sentenced Friday to 15 months in federal prison for sending threatening emails to the FBI, including ones in which he threatened to bomb the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office and referenced the notorious “Unabomber,” officials stated.
U.S. District Judge Wesley L. Hsu. Mark William Anten, 53, of Sun Valley.
At the conclusion of a three-day trial, a jury on June 5 found Anten guilty of two counts of threats by interstate communication.
“Federal agents deserve our appreciation for risking their lives to enforce the law and protect our community,” said United States Attorney Martin Estrada. “Threats against law enforcement are unacceptable, and we will continue to stand with the FBI and the rest of our law enforcement partners against those who threaten them.”
“Mr. Anten double-downed on his intimidation and credible death threats to FBI employees at their place of employment,” said Akil Davis, the Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office. “There are civil, productive ways to disagree with the government if so inclined, but threats of violence is not one of them and – as evidenced by today’s sentencing – will only lead to prison.”
Between July and December 2023, Anten sent increasingly threatening messages to the FBI, culminating in two bomb threats targeting the FBI field office in Westwood.
His emails repeatedly referenced Theodore John Kaczynski, known as “The Unabomber,” who carried out a 20-year bombing campaign that killed three people and injured nearly two dozen others.
Kaczynski, convicted of federal crimes, spent most of his sentence in the Supermax federal prison in Colorado before passing away in another federal prison in 2023.
On November 20, 2023, two FBI task force officers interviewed Anten outside his home. During the interview, Anten admitted to sending the threatening messages. The officers warned him to stop contacting agents, but his behavior escalated.
On December 5, 2023, Anten emailed FBI agents, declaring, “I AM THE UNABOMBER” and threatening to “UNABOMB THE LOS ANGELES FBI HQ.”
The following day, he sent another email stating, “I can go on a mass murder spree. In fact, it would be very explainable by your actions.” He ended the message with, “You ain’t getting away with this one,” signing off as “SuperMax or Death.”
In another email, Anten included a photo from an internet search for “how to make a dirty bomb.” That same day, he visited the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office and later emailed agents to inform them of his visit, adding that he would return. Surveillance footage confirmed he had been at the location.
The FBI investigated this matter.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Clifford D. Mpare of the General Crimes Section and Kedar S. Bhatia of the Terrorism and Export Crimes Section prosecuted this case.