Hagerstown woman arrested for making threats against churches, pastors

A woman from Hagerstown is under arrest after a joint investigation by Maryland fire authorities. Salamah Bassem Audi, 35, was arrested Saturday after she made several online threats against local churches.

Investigators with the Hagerstown Fire Marshal’s Office and the Office of the State Fire Marshal were notified of multiple threats made against Gateway Experience Church in Williamsport, The City of God in Hagerstown, and the church’s pastors last week. The threats were posted in an online blog, according to investigators.

During the investigation, authorities learned of an additional threat posted to the blog. In the post, Audi threatened to blow up the pastor of a Hagerstown house of worship into “itty bitty pieces” on the way to his car.

With the assistance of the Maryland Coordination and Analysis Center (MCAC), investigators were able to link the blog to Audi. Investigators obtained an arrest warrant for the woman. Hagerstown Police arrested Audi without incident.

Read more: WUSA9