NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — A Manhattan man who self-identifies as an “incel” pleaded guilty Friday to making a hoax threat to detonate a bomb at a New York City restaurant earlier this year.
Malik Sanchez, 19, who goes by the name “Smooth Sanchez” online, pleaded guilty to one count of conveying false and misleading information and hoaxes, according to the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Damian Williams.
According to the charges, on or about Feb. 13, 2021, Sanchez posted a video to his social media accounts showing him perpetrating a fake bomb threat at a restaurant in Manhattan’s Flatiron neighborhood.
The video allegedly showed Sanchez approached an outdoor seating area in front of the restaurant and state, “Let’s enhance their meal.”
Sanchez is then accused of standing close to two women seated at the restaurant and convey that he was about to detonate a bomb while chanting, “Allahu Akbar. Allahu Akbar. Bomb detonation in two, in two minutes. I take you with me and I kill all you. I kill all you right now. And I kill all you for Allah.”
Prosecutors said the two women in the video appeared frightened, gathered their belongings and left the table, as did at least four others who were seated in the outdoor eating area.
Police were called to the scene to investigate the bomb threat, officials said, but Sanchez had already fled the scene.
Prosecutors noted this was not the first time that Sanchez had recorded himself harassing, threatening and harming individuals whom he encounters in Manhattan.
Sanchez allegedly identifies as “involuntary celibate,” or an “incel,” which refers to a group of people, mostly men, who believe “society unjustly denies them sexual or romantic attention to which they are entitled.”
“Through online activity and in some instances violence, Incels target those who they believe are unjustly denying them sexual or romantic attention, which in most cases are women,” Williams said in a release.
Sanchez had previously posted a number of videos depicting him screaming at women in New York City while proclaiming his support for Incels’ unofficial founder Elliot Rodger, who killed six people when he attacked a sorority house and pedestrians in California in 2014.
Prior to posting those videos, Sanchez was also arrested in October 2020 after he scaled up the side of the Queensboro Bridge, causing the closure of the Manhattan-bound lanes.
It remains unclear if Sanchez faces any charges in connection with his other videos.
Prosecutors said Sanchez faces up to five years in prison for the hoax bomb threat. He will be sentenced on Feb. 8, 2022.
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