Police ID Man in Hedgehog Outfit, Fox 45 Bomb Scare

BALTIMORE, MD – The man wearing a hedgehog outfit who threatened violence Thursday at a Baltimore TV station has been identified as a 25-year-old Howard County man, police said.

Alex Michael Brizzi, of the 6300 block of Ducketts Lane in Elkridge, will be charged with multiple felonies, Baltimore Police Commissioner Kevin Davis announced Friday afternoon, noting he was currently at shock trauma being treated for gunshot wounds that were not believed to be life-threatening.

Brizzi was wearing a "hedgehog onesie" and a surgical mask when he walked into the Fox 45 news station vestibule at 1:20 p.m. on Thursday.

"This outfit appears to be something associated with the Japanese anime culture," Davis said.

"We quickly found out that a bomb threat had been called in to the network," Davis continued. "Shortly thereafter, a fire was set to a vehicle in the parking lot." Police said the torched car was associated with Brizzi.

Now, there is an arrest warrant for the Howard County man charging him with second-degree arson, first-degree malicious burning, threat of arson, four counts of reckless endangerment and one count of possessing a phony destructive device, Davis said.

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On Thursday afternoon, a security guard who spoke with Brizzi alerted authorities, and the station was evacuated; Brizzi remained inside the vestibule, determined to get on the air to broadcast the contents of his flash drive, which the commissioner said showed him making rants about the end of the world.

Underneath the onesie, Brizzi also had on a life preserver with items dangling that turned out to be chocolate candy bars wrapped in aluminum foil, connected by wire and attached to a motherboard, according to the commissioner, who said: "In essence, it was a replica explosive device."

When Brizzi left the Fox 45 building around 3 p.m. on Thursday of his own accord, police said SWAT officers repeatedly ordered that he take his hands out of his pockets.

Since he would not, three officers fired, according to Davis. "Brizzi went down but kept his hand on some sort of detonator device," Davis said.

A robot undressed him before Brizzi was taken to shock trauma for treatment, and he remained there Friday under police guard, according to Davis.

Brizzi's actions caused nearly seven hours of volatility around the TV station in the 2000 block of West 41st Street.

The area around Fox 45 was not deemed secure until 8:30 p.m. on Thursday as investigators worked to clear the scene, Davis said.

"The incident is not connected to any type of organized terrorism," Davis said on Friday.

Davis said his heart goes out to Brizzi's father, who has been featured on local news.

Two weeks ago, Brizzi suffered a mental break after he and his girlfriend broke up, Brizzi's father told Fox 45, adding that he presumed his son wanted to "pass on his message" that the world was going to end on June 3.

Reflecting on the situation in the context of a "post-Columbine" world, the commissioner said: "We're dealing with a single person who often suffers from a mental illness who becomes an active threat to our community."

A search warrant executed at Brizzi's home did not uncover any sort of explosive or replica devices, he added.

"He committed some very serious crimes yesterday but he also needs help," Davis said. "Although what Alex Brizzi eventually had was a fake explosive device...the fear of what he had shut down an entire community and scared a whole lot of people."

Baltimore Police Media Director T.J. Smith said: "This doesn't look like a joke. This doesn't look like candy bars," speaking about the gear that Brizzi wore into Fox 45. Still of life preserver worn by Brizzi from Periscope/Baltimore Police.