By Joe Johnson
A federal grand jury on Wednesday returned an indictment charging an Elberton woman with threatening to bomb the Athens-Clarke County Democratic Committee Campaign headquarters in Athens earlier this month and lying to federal investigators.
Jessica Diane Higginbotham, 35, is charged with one count each of communicating a bomb threat and making false statements.
If convicted of communicating a bomb threat, Higginbotham faces a maximum sentence of ten years imprisonment and a $250,000 fine. If convicted of making false statements, she faces a maximum sentence of five years imprisonment and a $250,000 fine.
According to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Georgia. the indictment alleges that Higginbotham made a threat to bomb the Athens-Clarke County Democratic Committee Campaign building on Sunset Drive on Dec. 3 and lied to federal agents on Dec. 4 about her knowledge of a specific email address and the use of the TextNow communication application on her cellphone.
Higginbotham is currently has been in custody at the Athens-Clarke County Jail since her arrest on Dec. 4. she will have an initial appearance in front of a U.S. District Court magistrate judge at a later date.
The case was investigated by the FBI, the U.S. Capitol Police, the Athens-Clarke County Police Department and the Elbert County Sheriff’s Office.