Police: Easton Man Made Bomb Threat at IRS Office

An Easton man was arrested for allegedly making a bomb threat at the federal Internal Revenue Service office in Bethlehem, which prompted the building’s evacuation on Monday afternoon, police said.

Leonard Charles Mackey, 64, of 1025 Wilkes-Barre St., was charged with making threats to use a weapon of mass destruction, terroristic threats and disorderly conduct, police said. He was committed to Northampton County Prison in lieu of $500,000 bail. 

According to a police news release, Mackey showed up at the federal office at 3 W. Broad St. at a little before 3 p.m., gave an employee his identification card and Social Security card and told her that he was sick and tired of being harassed by the IRS.

Mackey told the employee that he wanted a copy of a letter he received in 2008 stating that he no longer owed the IRS money, police said. Then he said that if he had extra money, he would build a monument to the guy who blew up the IRS building in Texas.

Mackey was apparently making a reference to Andrew Joseph Stack, a 53-year-old man, who, on Feb. 18, 2010, took his single-engine airplane and flew it into an office building where the Austin, Texas IRS office was located, killing himself and the office manager.

Then, according to police, as Mackey left the IRS office, he said to a security guard who had earlier asked him if had a firearm: “You didn’t ask me about bombs. We have them downstairs.” 

The guard tried to detain Mackey, but he ran to his parked car and drove off, police said.

The Bethlehem Police, Fire Department and Bomb Unit were called to the scene, the Sungard Public Sector building. IRS employees also called the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, police said. The office building in downtown Bethlehem was temporarily evacuated while emergency personnel looked for an explosive device, police said. Nothing was found.

Police then obtained an arrest warrant for Mackey who was picked up at his home.