HOUSTON – Investigators with the Precinct 1 Constable's Office raided a home in southwest Houston Monday and arrested a man suspected of emailing a bomb threat. The suspect, Norman Lamar Truss, 38, was charged with drug possession.
Last week KPRC received an email claiming bombs would go off at the civil and surrounding county courthouses. KPRC reported the threat to the Precinct 1 Constable's Office, which immediately launched an investigation.
The courthouse was also searched and no bombs were found.
"Anybody that calls in threats like this, we are going to pursue it all the way to the end," Constable Alan Rosen said.
Rosen said his investigators traced the internet provider address attached to the email to a computer in a home on Wilcrest near Beechnut. Since the original threat mentioned bombs, the Houston Police Department's SWAT team was brought in to initially enter the home and make sure there were no explosive devices.
"The criminals weren't too bright in this case and we're glad they weren't because we were able to trace the IP address back here," Rosen said.
Posted by KPRC2 Robert Arnold on Tuesday, September 27, 2016
Truss was at home at the time of the raid and arrested without incident. Truss denied sending the threat.
"Whose computer did they take then?" Channel 2 investigator Robert Arnold said.
"They're taking my computer," Truss said.
"They say they traced the IP address back to your computer," Arnold said.
"But I didn't do a bomb threat," Truss said.
"Does anybody else use that computer but you?" Arnold asked.
"I really don't know right now," Truss said.
Rosen said officers also found ecstasy, 3-4 guns and at least 5 pounds of marijuana in the home.
"What about the drugs and the guns?" Arnold asked.
"Well, that's mine," Truss said.
Rosen said Truss is being charged with possession of marijuana and possession of a controlled substance. Rosen said officers will do a forensic search of Truss' computer to determine if there is enough evidence to also file terroristic threat charges.
However, Rosen said one other detail helped lead investigators to Truss' home. Rosen said the day the threat was sent via email, Truss was scheduled to appear in civil court in a debt collection case.
"The fact that he was due in court the very same day and the very same time at which the bomb threat was called in, the likelihood of it not being the right guy is pretty much zero," Rosen said.
State and county records show Truss has a prior record for trespassing and possession of a controlled substance. Rosen said Truss is also facing potential charges related to the guns found in the home.
