A 44-year-old Cheyenne man who made a bomb threat at the Laramie County courthouse to delay her trial agreed to a plea deal Thursday in exchange for testifying.
Ezekiel Hernandez was also charged in a separate case for allegedly assisting the same friend, Melinda Hurt of Fort Collins, Colorado, in stealing from his roommate.
According to the agreement, Hernandez will not face prison time and must provide “complete and truthful testimony” against Hurt.
She is accused of using Hernandez’s 59-year-old female roommate’s ID and banking information to rent an Xbox video game console for $1,643 and making other purchases and withdrawals with the 59-year-old’s debit card and money.
Hernandez pleaded guilty to accessory, aiding, and abetting, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a $10,000 fine.
The agreement reached with Laramie County Deputy District Attorney Jack Hatfield calls for Hernandez to receive a three- to five-year suspended prison sentence and three years of supervised probation.
According to court records, if Hernandez fulfills his plea deal obligations, charges of witness intimidation and terroristic threats will be dropped.
Hernandez’s cases began on September 16, 2024, for the bomb threat, and on January 19, 2025, for aiding and abetting theft.
According to a police affidavit, on September 16, someone called the state’s “Safe2Tell” tip line to report a bomb in the Laramie County Government Complex.
The caller identified the person making the threat as “Gilbert Hyemm,” and the tipster stated that he had not heard from “Hyemm” in several hours.
Bomb Threat As Jury Trial Began
A check of the tipster’s phone number revealed that it belonged to Hernandez.
An officer informed courthouse security personnel that he was an acquaintance of Hurt, whose “jury trial was starting that day in District Court.”
Bomb dogs and their law enforcement handlers were dispatched to sweep the courthouse, but no evacuation was ordered, according to the affidavit.
Hurt was found guilty of forgery and the unauthorized use of personal identifying information.
During a law enforcement investigation and subsequent interview on March 11, 2025, Hernandez told an investigator that the bomb threat was Hurt’s idea.
“According to Hernandez, the plan was to play a prerecorded message that said there was a bomb at the Laramie County Court House,” the statement reads. “He did not say their intention, but Hurt told him to make the call while she was in court, then later said he was to make the call during sentencing.”
Hernandez informed the investigator that he called Safe2Tell and sent the message from his phone.
And Theft
In the theft case, the daughter of Hernandez’s roommate called police on Jan. 10 after discovering purchase transactions in Fort Collins and Cheyenne that her mother did not make, as well as withdrawals from her mother’s bank account on Dec. 5, 2024, of $405 and $705 that her mother did not make.
The report came shortly after Hernandez had moved in with her mother. According to the affidavit, Hurt was Hernandez’s frequent guest.
On December 18, 2024, the Xbox was ordered and delivered to Hernandez’s home, which he shared with the woman, for a rental fee of $1,643. According to the affidavit, Hernandez signed the receipt after receiving the delivery.
On January 21, a rental company representative came to the house to discuss a missed payment on the Xbox. The 59-year-old woman became upset because her ID, phone, purse, and bank account were all missing.
She stated that she had never done business with the rental store.
Staff at the rental store showed her screenshots of the store’s messaging app, which included her ID and an order to “have the Xbox delivered while her son is at school.”
According to the affidavit, Hernandez’s roommate used his debit card to purchase hiking boots from a Cheyenne business and a smart TV from another Cheyenne business.
The affidavit also states that Hurt made multiple purchases at a Fort Collins doughnut shop located 500 feet away from her apartment.
Furthermore, according to the affidavit, the IRS rejected the daughter of Hernandez’s 59-year-old roommate’s income tax filing after she claimed her mother as a dependent because her mother had already been claimed as a dependent on another tax form.
Hernadez told an investigator that he “might have” claimed the 59-year-old, but Hurt did his taxes for him.
On February 23, 2025, when officers arrested Hernandez after seeing Hurt enter his home, he came to the door and surrendered. Hurt was found hiding in a bathroom closet, according to the affidavit.
Hurt has pleaded not guilty to seven charges, including influencing a jury and tampering with witnesses, terroristic threats, three counts of theft, and one count of interference with a police officer.
Her trial is scheduled for August 5.
