In May of 2023, the normal hustle and bustle of Boston's Seaport District was disrupted by a bomb threat from Soledad Hernandez-Medina, who allegedly instigated a disturbance in an Atlantic Avenue apartment building. Hernandez-Medina, a 31-year-old woman from Palmer, Massachusetts, is now facing charges of bomb threat with serious public alarm, assault with a dangerous weapon, trespassing, disturbing the peace, and two counts of assault and battery on a police officer according to the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office.
Officials say that Hernandez-Medina entered the building where she did not reside and began causing a disturbance on the premises. When she was asked to leave, she allegedly threatened to place a bomb inside and shoot the building staff members NBC Boston reports. Ignoring the request to exit the building, Hernandez-Medina proceeded to the third floor, entering an apartment unit where tenants had lodged multiple complaints about drug activity and various people entering and leaving.
As Boston police officers confronted Hernandez-Medina on the third floor, she informed them that her boyfriend resided in the apartment, providing his name. According to the District Attorney's report, the building staff did not recognize the name provided. When the police informed Hernandez-Medina that she was required to leave the property, she allegedly became verbally aggressive, lunging at officers and building staff, before knocking over a TV and trying to walk out with multiple cellphones and a video game console.
In the midst of the commotion, the officers present managed to subdue Hernandez-Medina, trying to keep the situation under control. In the process, one of the police officers sustained lacerations and subsequently noticed blood dripping down his leg.
Considering the severity of the charges, Hernandez-Medina is set to face legal consequences for her actions that day. Yesterday, she appeared in Central BMC for her arraignment, where Judge Tracy-Lee Lyons revoked her bail on an unrelated Springfield warrant and ordered her to stay away from the apartment building where the incident occurred according to the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office. A court date has been scheduled for October 5.
Although the situation was tense, the outcome could have been much worse had the officers not been able to intervene and contain the disruption. District Attorney Kevin Hayden commended the police for their professionalism, stating, "This incident reflects both the dangerous behavior of a combative individual and how that behavior impacted the quality of life for people who have every right to peace and quiet in their own living spaces." Thankfully, despite the threats made by Hernandez-Medina, no one was seriously injured, and the community has since returned to its normal, peaceful state.
