A Blaine resident, Oleg Petrashov, has conceded guilt to charges related to a hoax involving mailed powders. Acting U.S. Attorney Lisa D. Kirkpatrick confirmed Petrashov's plea to two counts of disseminating false information.
In the legal documents, it was specified that on June 30, 2020, Petrashov, aged 45, sent a package with brown and tan powder to the FBI Field Office located in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota. Another parcel containing white powder followed on November 4, 2022, directed to the same FBI office. These deliveries led to extensive investigations for potential explosive and biological threats, causing operational disruptions, necessitating staff relocation, decontamination steps, and the involvement of bomb technicians.
Petrashov, when questioned by FBI agents in April 2023, confessed to mailing the substances, intending to implicate a family member due to a personal disagreement, thus prompting an official investigation against them.
Petrashov's guilty plea was made in the U.S. District Court before Judge Laura M. Provinzino. He acknowledged the intentional act of conveying misleading or false information suggesting the presence of a biological threat or explosive.
The case proceedings were conducted through the collaborative efforts of the FBI and U.S. Postal Inspection Service. The prosecution is led by Assistant U.S. Attorney Bradley M. Endicott from Minnesota and Patrick Cashman from the National Security Division.
