Former 911 dispatcher charged after posting bomb threats online

A Las Cruces man and former 911 dispatcher faces criminal charges after the FBI accused him of threatening to blow up the Doña Ana County Government Center and Mesilla Valley Regional Dispatch Authority building. 

Jason Rivera, 53, is charged with making multiple terroristic threats against county facilities, according to a U.S. Department of Justice news release. A federal judge ordered that he remain in jail without bond until the case is resolved. 

The charges largely stem from a flurry of Facebook posts on April 25, 2024, that led to an evacuation of the Doña Ana County Government Center as the building was swept for bombs. 

According to a criminal complaint, Rivera posted threats like “MVRDA 911 center Go outside and stand in the middle of the back lot, it's is heavily wired with explosives, And look up to the sky,” and “Dona Ana County Government Center. You allowed a foreign agent to access my trunks MVRDA 911 Center is sitting on a lot That lot is heavily wired to explode,” among dozens of other posts around 5 a.m. on April 25, 2024. 

“During the 0600 hour (6 a.m.) of April 25, 2024, Rivera's page showed several other posts tagging MVRDA 911 Center as well as Kim Jon Un and several Balkan Republics,” the criminal complaint said. 

Some of the threats specifically targeted MVRDA employees. 

The criminal complaint also noted that Rivera was a former employee from 2009 until 2020. 

“Rivera was once disciplined for abuse of sick leave and earned a reputation for walking into new-hire orientations and ‘hovering’ around new female employees in a way that made them feel uncomfortable,” the complaint said. 

The complaint also noted that Rivera was accused of showing up to the Border Patrol checkpoint on Interstate 10 west of Las Cruces, claiming to have lost his car and wearing no clothes.