Bellingham man to appear Thursday in East Boston BMC for probable cause hearing on threat and hijack charge
BOSTON, August 10, 2026 – A Bellingham man with a history of firearm and threat charges dating to 2018 will appear in East Boston BMC Thursday for a probable cause hearing for a February bomb threat called in to Logan Airport, his third charge of calling in bomb threats to well-populated locations, Suffolk District Attorney Kevin Hayden announced.
JOHN LEE, 43, was arraigned last month on one count of a bomb or hijack threat. Judge Debra DelVecchio set bail at $500 and ordered Lee to reside with his parents, stay away from Logan Airport, surrender any firearms and weapons, and to continue treatment with a psychiatrist.
Lee is currently on a suspended sentence associated with a bomb threat to Milford Hospital and related firearms charges. He has also been charged with making threats to Encore casino in Everett.
At around 5 a.m. on February 3, Bellingham police received a call from an unidentified caller stating that there was a bomb at Milford Hospital. The hospital went into lockdown with ambulances diverted to other hospitals. Officers searched the building and found nothing suspicious.
Thirty minutes later, Bellingham police received another call from the same phone number and what sounded like the same person stating there was a bomb at Logan Airport. The State Police Bomb Squad conducted a sweep of all terminals and airport property, and no suspicious items or people were found.
State Police filed emergency disclosure requests to various phone carriers and identified the caller as Lee.
Officers arrested Lee at his home in Bellingham. During the arrest, officers found numerous illegal firearms in Lee’s residence. Lee will face the weapons charges in Worcester County.
“Threats like these cause significant disruption at the targeted locations and often result in lost production hours, not to mention the cost and personnel time incurred by police on their safety sweeps. These are serious offenses and we will treat them appropriately,” Hayden said.
All charged individuals are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.
Suffolk County District Attorney Kevin Hayden’s office serves the communities of Boston, Chelsea, Revere, and Winthrop. Our office handles more than 20,000 cases a year. Nearly 160 assistant district attorneys practice in nine district and municipal courts, Suffolk Superior Court, the Massachusetts Appeals Court, the Boston and Chelsea Juvenile Courts and the Supreme Judicial Court. Our office employs some 300 people and offers a wide range of services and programs for anyone encountering the criminal justice system. We are committed to educating the public about our mission and services while focusing on crime prevention to keep the residents, workers and visitors of Suffolk County safe.
James Borghesani, Chief of Communications