BLOOMINGTON — A 19-year-old Bloomington man was arrested after police say he posted a bomb threat against a local Applebee’s restaurant on social media because his food was taking too long.
Jaxon Hahn was taken into custody Sunday and booked into the Monroe County Jail. Formal charges were filed Monday in Monroe Circuit Court 9.
The investigation began around 10:00 p.m. Sunday when the FBI National Threat Operations Center received a warning from Meta, the parent company of Instagram. Meta’s automated systems flagged a story post from the user account “hahn_tilli_solo” around 9:00 p.m. and deemed the threat credible. The local FBI office immediately forwarded the tip to the Bloomington Police Department.
The post reportedly displayed an image of the interior of the Applebee’s located at 2894 E. 3rd St., attached to the College Mall, alongside text explicitly stating: “I’m going to bomb the Applebee’s at 2894 E. 3rd Street, Bloomington, IN., 47401, United States.”
In response to the threat:
- Bloomington Police officers thoroughly searched the premises and found no explosive or suspicious devices.
- Restaurant management cleared out all patrons and closed the establishment approximately 90 minutes early for safety.
‘Hungry, Tired, and Upset’
Law enforcement traced the social media account to an apartment on Indiana University’s campus, where they located Hahn and brought him to police headquarters for questioning.
During the interview, Hahn admitted to writing the post, explaining to officers that he was “hungry, tired, and upset that he hadn’t gotten his food in an appropriate amount of time.” According to court records, Hahn stated it was a “stupid post” and that he was not serious. Despite being published to a private account with roughly 50 followers, the threat triggered automatic escalation protocols.
Hahn was arrested on a count of intimidation, a Level 6 felony. An initial hearing is scheduled for Friday, Aug. 21, in Monroe Circuit Court before Judge Christine Talley Haseman.
