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Volusia County inmate accused of threatening to join terrorist groups, bomb 7 sites

VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. — A Volusia County Branch Jail inmate has been charged with making threats to bomb several government buildings and other major facilities, the Volusia County Sheriff's Office said Wednesday.

Investigators said that on July 9, Ethan Russell, 18, handed a jail officer a five-page handwritten note detailing his plan to join the Islamic State group, the Taliban and al-Qaeda and to bomb the White House, the U.S. Capitol, the Pentagon, Orlando International Airport, the Amway Center, Daytona International Speedway and the Volusia County Courthouse in DeLand.

Deputies said Russell was in jail on previous charges of attempted armed burglary stemming from a March 25 incident in which a neighbor witnessed him trying to break into a Deltona home by throwing a rock through a window.

Investigators said Russell was carrying seven large kitchen knives, a green mask and a pair of gloves.

Russell remains jailed without bail. He was charged with making written threats to kill.

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