Texas man arrested for Heinz Field shooting threats
Yuttana Choochongkol, also known as Jason Manotham, 40, of San Antonio, Texas, has been arrested and charged by federal authorities with allegedly threatening to shoot Pittsburgh Steelers players and fans during the AFC Divisional Round game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at Heinz Field on Jan. 14.
Choochongkol was charged with one count of transmitting interstate threatening communications, U.S. Attorney Scott W. Brady said in a news release Friday.
According to a complaint filed Jan. 12, Choochongkol sent three separate communications threatening a mass shooting and suicide during the playoff game.
Choochongkol allegedly communicated a threat of a mass shooting and suicide to KDKA-TV through their ‘Contact Us” Internet portal on at 8:47 p.m. Jan. 10, Brady said.
He transmitted subsequent violent threats related to the game through the Heinzfield.com “Contact Us” Internet portal at 8:26 p.m. Jan. 10 and again at 9:04 a.m. Jan. 11, Brady said.
Special Agents with the FBI-Pittsburgh’s Joint Terrorism Task Force were able to trace the originating address of the communications to a facility in San Antonio. FBI agents there responded to that location and identified the individual who communicated the threats as Choochongkol.
He was arrested Jan. 12.
On Friday, a federal magistrate judge in the Western District of Texas granted the government’s request to detain Choochongkol without bond pending trial in the Western District of Pennsylvania.
“Just days prior to 68,000 fans gathering at Heinz Field, the FBI worked rapidly to identify and arrest this defendant, who threatened mass violence against players and fans,” Brady said. “We commend the FBI and Pittsburgh Bureau of Police for their exceptional work in the arrest of Choochongkol, which averted a potential disaster. The safety and protection of the citizens of Western Pennsylvania remains our highest priority.”
The law provides for a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a fine of $250,000, or both.
Assistant United States Attorney Paul Hull is prosecuting this case. The Federal Bureau of Investigation, aided by the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police, conducted the investigation that led to the complaint against Choochongkol. The United States Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Texas is also assisting in the prosecution of this case.
