By Nate Robson
The Citizen
AUBURN, N.Y. — A former Auburn Correctional Facility inmate pleaded not guilty in federal court Thursday to mailing five fake anthrax letters to several U.S. District Court offices in 2007.
According to the U.S. Attorney General’s Office and the five-count indictment filed in U.S. District Court Northern District of New York in Syracuse, Roberto Cepeda, 46, is accused of mailing five letters that claimed to contain anthrax. The letters were allegedly sent while Cepeda was an inmate at the Auburn Correctional Facility.
In the letters, Cepeda is accused of writing “This is ANTHRAX,” “ANTHRAX for you” and “Die from ANTHRAX.”
The letters were sent to district court clerk’s offices in Syracuse; Washington, D.C.; Harrisonburg, Va.; Charlottesville, Va.; and Alexandria, Va.
The attorney general’s office said in a press release that Cepeda faces up to five years in federal prison for each count as well as up to $250,000 in fines and additional supervision upon release.
Court officials said Cepeda does not have an attorney yet.
According to the State Department of Correctional and Community Supervision, Cepeda is serving a 4.5- to nine-year prison sentence for third-degree burglary, first-degree identity theft, second-degree forgery and first-degree attempting to place a fake bomb.
Cepeda is scheduled for a parole hearing in August and his maximum release date is July 2014.
Cepeda is currently in custody at the Upstate Correctional Facility in Franklin County.
DOCCS officials said Cepeda was punished with 36 months of disciplinary confinement and 36 months loss of privileges after prison officials found Cepeda guilty of mailing the hoax letters.
Cepeda also lost 36 months of good time, which delayed his earliest release date.
Prison officials found Cepeda guilty of violating prison rules and regulations in regards to mailing correspondence, impersonation, threats and harassment, DOCCS said.
Prison officials do inspect incoming letters for contraband before distributing mail to inmates, but outgoing letters are typically not inspected unless officials have a reason to be suspicious, DOCCS said.
Republished with permission from The Ctizen