Provo man charged with threat of terrorism after allegedly threatening to blow up Missionary Training Center

PROVO, Utah (ABC4) — A Provo man who allegedly threatened to blow up the Missionary Training Center was charged Tuesday with threat of terrorism.

Anthony Hambleton Beardall, 49, was charged with one count of threat of terrorism, a second degree felony, and one count of electronic communication harassment, a misdemeanor.

On April 24, 2024, Beardall allegedly called the BYU information center and threatened to blow up the Missionary Training Center.

According to court documents, he told the person on the phone, “You better shut down the [Missionary Training Center], or we’re going to blow [it] out of the water, baby.”

In that call, he also allegedly stated, “Jesus Christ never rose from the grave, ok? It’s a lie,” and told the operator, and presumably the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, to stop pushing their beliefs on the world.

Additionally, Beardall allegedly claimed that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints would be “shut down in Israel pretty soon,” and that the Church could no longer send out missionaries in the United States.

Police said he called the information line at least 10 times that day, repeating that the MTC needed to be shut down and calling phone operators “profane and offensive names.”

According to court records, Beardall has a history of being charged with stalking, violating a protective order, and harassment.