American Airlines Employee’s Online Boyfriend Called In Airport Bomb Threats—And Watched Police Respond Live

An American Airlines employee met a man on TikTok, and her online boyfriend used the relationship to make bomb threats against the airport where she worked. From Alabama, he watched police responding in Bangor, Maine, over video chat. He’s now pled guilty. Robert Tyler Wicks, 25, of Decatur, Alabama, entered his guilty plea in federal court on Friday, September 25. The threats happened February 13 and 14, 2025. According to earlier reporting on the FBI affidavit, Wicks sent 107 messages to two American Airlines employees on February 13. He claimed to have guns, said their phones had been infected with viruses, and threatened an incident at 10:50 the next morning. These messages went to private phone numbers. The sender knew personal details about the employees and could describe activity inside the airport. Investigators worried they were dealing with someone who had airport access and credentials. Around 5 a.m. the next morning, he called the airport switchboard, demanded to speak with investigators and claimed there were bombs outside the building on timers. He imposed short deadlines involving the employees’ phones. And while speaking with the FBI he called Washington Dulles, asked for American Airlines, and threatened an explosion in 15 minutes. The American employee knew him as “Trey Live.” They’d met on TikTok and were in a long-distance relationship. Investigators were told he’d obtained coworkers’ contact information during a screen-sharing session. Police spotted the employee on a video call inside the airport. That helped explain how someone in Alabama could describe the response in Maine. He could see what was happening through her phone. Wicks used an app to communicate under a different phone number. But investigators linked the activity to an iPhone and cell towers in Decatur. Records also led to his mother, who’d moved there with him from Tennessee. Agents interviewed him on February 14, and he admitted making the threats. The employee had complained to Wicks about having to work late because of the previous night’s bomb threat. According to the affidavit, he also stole money from her bank account. Flights were delayed on both days. One American flight to Washington National arrived five hours late, impacting the next flight as well. The FBI put American’s cost at approximately $12,189. The man told investigators the calls were a prank. It’s remarkable the people who think a bomb threat is a good way to pull something off. A student didn’t want his parents visiting him at school. He called in a threat against their easyJet flight from Lyon to Rennes. The plane returned to Lyon with 159 passengers, and a replacement aircraft and crew had to be brought in from London Luton. A man wanted to keep his wife from leaving him. She’d found a job in the Gulf. He called police and claimed she was a suicide bomber, temporarily disrupting international departures from Delhi. A man wanted a date with a Lufthansa flight attendant. After being turned down, he called in a threat to keep her flight from leaving Belgrade. The 130 passengers and five crew had to evacuate. An Aerolineas Argentinas flight attendant didn’t want to fly with her ex-boyfriend and his new girlfriend. She used her daughter’s phone to make the threat against a Buenos Aires–Miami flight carrying 270 passengers. It eventually departed nine hours late. Then there’s the passenger who wanted his wallet back from SpiceJet, and the man who wanted Spirit to hold a flight he’d missed. A New Orleans parking dispute escalated into bomb threats, too. Wicks faces up to five years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release. (HT: Paddle Your Own Kanoo) Topics on this page