Acting U.S. Attorney Prerak Shah for the Northern District of Texas made the announcement Wednesday.
Seth Aaron Pendley, 28, was arrested in April after he tried to buy an explosive device from an undercover Federal Bureau of Investigation employee in Fort Worth. Pendley pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Hal R. Ray Jr.
According to court documents, Pendley admitted to disclosing his plan to a confidential source in January via an encrypted messaging application.
In late February, he sent this same source a list of data center addresses, noting that if they were destroyed it would “kill off about 70 percent of the internet.”
City changes mask mandate in most places
The City of Wichita Falls has altered its mask-wearing policy to comply with Gov. Greg Abbott s executive order.
Masks are no longer required to be worn inside city facilities with two exceptions. Masks are still required at the Wichita Falls Regional Airport and on the Falls Ride Transportation system. The exceptions are due to a requirement of the Transportation Security Administration and the Federal Transit Administration.
Both agencies extended their mask orders, which includes public transportation, through Sept. 13. The wearing of face coverings/masks is optional and any employee or citizen who chooses to wear a face covering/mask is encouraged to do so. The Wichita Falls – Wichita County Public Health District also strongly recommends that anyone who is not vaccinated continue to wear a mask, the city said in a press release.
Allegations in court records give a snapshot of a wobbly commissioner at a Wichita County facility whose actions alarmed someone enough to call the cops to report a possible drunk driver.
Commissioner Jeff Watts hit a post when he pulled up to a county building north of Electra on State Highway 25 the evening of Feb. 18, according to allegations in court documents.
He stumbled getting out of his pickup and tripped and fell walking up to the Precinct 4 annex building to let in a cleaning crew from a Wichita Falls business, according to allegations in court documents. A witness called the Electra police.
Rainfall above normal barely
Wichita Falls has exceeded its normal rainfall for this time of year by 0.01-inch.
Rain on Tuesday added 0.73-inch to the official rain bucket, bringing the total for the year to 8.39 inches. Normal rainfall by this date is 8.38 inches.
More rain is in the forecast. The National Weather Service said while a few pop-up showers are possible Wednesday, showers and thunderstorms return to North Texas Saturday and will linger through Tuesday.
The Storm Prediction Center does not forecast any severe weather in the days ahead.
Wichita Falls will have another cooler-than-normal day Wednesday with a high of just 65 degrees, but then the mercury begins a climb toward the 80s for the rest of the week.
Council awards bid on Taft Boulevard project
Wichita Falls City Councilors Tuesday awarded the contract for the Taft Boulevard Improvement Project to Scales Concrete Construction Co., Inc., a local company, for $5,566,124. The widening of Taft was approved by voters in 2018 as part of a street bond issue.
In awarding the contract, the city staff considered sealed bids on the qualifications of each bidder rather than just granting the job to the lowest bidder. Two companies submitted lower bids than Scales.
“This is going to be one of those projects where the public is going to come to us,” Mayor Stephen Santellana said.