A Navy civilian employee admitted to falsely reporting a shooting threat at a military base in an effort to allegedly “trauma bond” with her co-workers.
Malika Brittingham wrote in a text message to a co-worker on Tuesday that she heard five to six gunshots at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst in New Jersey. Her co-worker then called 911 and relayed what she told her.
The base then went into lockdown, and law enforcement arrived. The lockdown prompted panic from many on the base and disrupted operations for about an hour before the all-clear came.
Brittingham later recanted the story after no shooter was found and the all-clear was given at the base, prosecutors said. Brittingham said she and her colleagues could “trauma bond” over the shared experience, the criminal complaint against her said.
She’s being charged for conveying false information about an active shooter. She was taken into custody on Tuesday afternoon, NBC 10 reported.
U.S. Attorney Alina Habba blasted Brittingham, saying in a post on X, “This kind of senseless fear-mongering and disruption will not be tolerated in my state.”
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“After everything this country has gone through, especially in light of current events, I will be sure to bring down the hammer of the law for anyone found guilty of creating unnecessary panic and undermining public trust,” Habba added.
Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst is New Jersey’s largest military base, spanning 42,000 acres and employing personnel from the Air Force, Army, and Navy. The base employs thousands of service members and civilians.
