Las Vegas man pleads guilty but mentally ill to bomb-threat charge
A Las Vegas man authorities said idolized the Route 91 Harvest festival mass shooter pleaded guilty but mentally ill to a bomb-threat charge Thursday.
Calin Hodges, 23, could face between one and six years behind bars, but prosecutors do not plan to argue for prison time, according to a plea agreement. Instead, his lawyer, Malcolm LaVergne, is expected to seek probation and mental health treatment for Hodges.
LaVergne has said that at least one of Hodges’ statements that drew the attention of authorities was made after Hodges was approached by a church elder at Mountaintop Faith Ministries for “spiritual healing” during an evening Bible study.
In an indictment handed down in March, prosecutors said at least 40 people were at the church service when Hodges proclaimed he would become “the greatest mass shooter in history,” referencing Mandalay Bay gunman Stephen Paddock, who killed 58 people and injured hundreds more before killing himself Oct. 1. Hodges was indicted on a terrorism charge.
Investigators found no weapons in Hodges’ possession, and he has no criminal record, according to prosecutors and LaVergne.
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