THOMASTON — Authorities say a Connecticut man who has been charged with threatening to shoot people at a Walmart purchased ammunition from the Thomaston Walmart that could have been used in the AR-15 semi-automatic rifle he possessed.
That information was included in an affidavit filed Monday in U.S. District Court in Portland to support a criminal complaint charging Jeremy H. Rogers, 25, with the federal charge of being a felon in possession of a firearm.
In addition, the affidavit states that Rogers had sent more online comments than earlier revealed about a potential shooting at a Walmart.
Jeremy Rogers, in orange jumpsuit, appeared in Knox County Court on Aug. 24, two days after he threatened a shooting a Walmart. Stephen Betts/The Courier-Gazette
Rogers was arrested Aug. 22 outside a residence on Mt. Pleasant Street in Rockport by Rockland Police Sgt. Joel Neal as soon as Thomaston Police Chief Tim Hoppe had obtained a state arrest warrant for felony terrorizing with a dangerous weapon, felony terrorizing and felony possession of a firearm by a prohibited person.
The arrest came after New York state police had notified Maine authorities that Rogers sent a video via Facebook messenger to a woman in New York showing him wearing a ski mask and holding the military style AR-15. In the video, he is quoted as saying “(Expletive) it, I’m going to Walmart,” according to an affidavit filed in Knox County Court in Rockland.
The threat came less than three weeks after a man killed 22 people and wounded 27 at a Walmart in El Paso, Texas. And a few days later, a man was arrested for threatening to commit a mass shooting at a Walmart in Florida.
A second video showed Rogers, without a mask, making disparaging comments about a woman and pointing a gun at his head, the affidavit said.
Rockport police were alerted because family members said Rogers had recently moved to the town.
The affidavit filed in federal court reveals that Rogers purchased ammunition suitable for use in an AR-15 from the Walmart in Thomaston on Aug. 10. The FBI statement also detailed additional threats Rogers had made over Facebook.
On Aug. 12, he posted a photograph of the AR-15 and said “Wanna see my new Walmart killer?”
“I got so bored I bought a bunch of bullets and shotgun shells. I named her Bella,” Rogers said in the posts, according to the FBI affidavit.
He then commented online that he was trying to figure out what was wrong with one of his guns because it could only fire one shot at a time.
On Aug. 18, he sent a Facebook message to another person showing a photograph of the interior of a Walmart with the comment “Match begins at 2.” Later in the day, he sent a post to another person in which he is wearing a mask and said he was going to Walmart.
Yet another video shows Rogers firing a Glock 17C handgun that had a small flashlight attached to it. He then shows himself handling three separate handguns and stated “Man, I’m drowning in pistols, I got the 9mm Makarov, from Russia with love. Let’s go to Austria, get the police Glock, and let’s go over to this bitch and get out the other Glock.”
After Rogers was arrested, he asked “Is this because of the Facebook post I sent someone?” the affidavit said.
During questioning by Rockland police and the FBI, Rogers admitted he had been convicted in Connecticut of a felony weapons charge. He also said that Facebook would suspend his accounts for his threatening posts and he would simply switch to another account.
Rogers later said he intended the messages as a joke.
A criminal background check on Rogers found he had convictions in October 2016 in Norwalk, Connecticut, for criminal possession of a firearm and causing risk of injury to a child, court records show. He was sentenced to two years in prison, but was released on probation after 13 months.
The maximum sentence for the new federal charge is 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up $250,000.
Rogers is represented by Attorney Jonathan Handelman of Brunswick. Rogers remains held at the Knox County Jail in Rockland. No court date is listed.
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