Horsham man sentenced for bomb threat

A Horsham man was sentenced Friday to 18 months in federal prison for posting a bomb threat on the website of the Willow Grove Park Mall, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.

David Barnhouse, 24, posted the message after hacking into his neighbor's Verizon FiOS router to give the impression that they were responsible, prosecutors said.

The message, posted June 20, 2013, said that a bomb was hidden in the mall and would be detonated "unless all members of the Islamic faith imprisoned in the United States are freed by 7 p.m. on June 23," according to prosecutors.

The mall apparently paid for increased security in the aftermath, and the FBI executed a search warrant on the home of the neighbor, who was not named.

In addition to Barnhouse's prison sentence, prosecutors said he will have to pay restitution to the mall and serve three years of supervised release.

Barnhouse pleaded guilty to charges including sending threats in interstate commerce, and concealing records with intent to impede an investigation, court documents say.

Attempts to reach Barnhouse's attorney for comment were unsuccessful.

- Chris Palmer