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T.J. Miller, Former 'Silicon Valley' Star, Faces Federal Charge For False Bomb Threat
The comedian faces up to five years in prison if convicted.
T.J. Miller, the troubled former “Silicon Valley” star, was arrested Monday and faces a federal charge for allegedly calling in a false bomb threat on an Amtrak train to New York City, officials announced Tuesday.
The comedian faces up to five years in prison if convicted of intentionally conveying to law enforcement false information.
Miller called a 911 dispatcher during an Amtrak ride from Washington, D.C. to New York March 18 and said a female passenger “has a bomb in her bag,” according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Connecticut. Amtrak officials stopped the train in Westport, Connecticut and bomb squad members searched it, but they found no evidence of an explosive device or materials.
An investigator followed up with Miller, who offered defenses for his call in slurred speech. The officer asked if Miller drank alcohol that day and the actor replied, “One glass of red wine.” Miller also denied having a mental illness and told the officer, “This is the first time I’ve ever made a call like this before. I am worried for everyone on that train. Someone has to check that lady out.”
Investigators later determined that Miller had been on a different train when he placed the call. An attendant on that train said Miller got kicked off in New York due to intoxication and “hostile exchanges” with a woman sitting near him in a first class car.
Investigators ultimately determined Miller had “a grudge” against the woman on the train and called 911 with false information, the attorney’s office said. A search of the woman found no evidence that she was carrying a weapon or doing anything suspicious.
Miller was arrested at LaGuardia Airport Monday night. He appeared before a judge in New Haven Tuesday and was released on $100,000 bond.
Miller was previously arrested in 2016 for allegedly assaulting an Uber driver in Los Angeles over an argument about Donald Trump. A woman who said she dated Miller when they attended George Washington University has accused him of choking and punching her without her consent, but he has not faced charges.
Insiders on "Silicon Valley," which Miller left in 2017, said he was a "danger" to have around and became notorious for outbursts and unprofessional behavior.
