The man accused of attacking Sam Altman’s home was in the midst of a mental crisis, a lawyer said
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The man accused of trying to kill OpenAI CEO Sam Altman by throwing a Molotov cocktail at his San Francisco home was suffering from mental illness and has been charged by prosecutors, his public defender said Tuesday.
Daniel Moreno-Gama of Spring, Texas, made his first appearance in federal court on Tuesday. The judge ordered that he be held without bail and his trial was adjourned to May 5.
Authorities say he threw a metal object at Altman’s home on Friday, setting the front gate on fire before fleeing on foot. Within an hour, Moreno-Gama went to the OpenAI headquarters a few kilometers away and threatened to burn down the building, they said. He said he was going to town from Texas.
No one was injured at Altman’s home or the company’s offices. San Francisco Deputy Public Defender Diamond Ward said the case is “a property crime, at the very least,” and prosecutors are pursuing higher charges against Altman. Moreno-Gama also faces federal charges.
“It is unfair and wrong for the San Francisco district attorney and the federal government to fear and exploit the mental illness of a vulnerable young man, by turning a vandalism charge into an attempted murder, life exposure charge to gain the support of a billionaire, and score political points by abusing real justice for all involved,” Ward said.
The suspect expressed hatred for AI: the authorities
Authorities said Moreno-Gama, 20, expressed hatred for artificial intelligence in his writings, describing it as a threat to humanity and warning of “imminent extinction,” according to court documents.
“This was no accident. This was planned, targeted and very serious,” FBI San Francisco Acting Special Agent in Charge Matt Cobo said during a news conference Monday.
Moreno-Gama has been charged in California state court with two counts of attempted murder and attempted arson, San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins said. He tried to kill both Altman and the security guard at Altman’s apartment, she said. Officials have not said whether Altman was home at the time.
Jenkins said the federal charges carry penalties ranging from 19 years to life in prison.
The FBI searched the suspect’s home in Texas
On Monday morning, FBI agents went to Moreno-Gama’s Houston-area home where he spent several hours before leaving. He was also charged by federal prosecutors with possessing an unregistered firearm and causing damage and destruction of property using explosives. Those charges carry penalties of up to 10 years and 20 years in prison.
“We will treat this as domestic terrorism, and in cooperation with our partners, we will prosecute him to the fullest extent of the law,” US Attorney Craig Missakian said when announcing the charges on Monday.
Federal court documents do not list an attorney for Moreno-Gama, and he has yet to make an initial appearance in federal court.
A document in which Moreno-Gama discussed his opposition to AI also intimidated Altman and executives at other AI companies, officials said.
“If I am going to advocate for others to kill and commit crimes, I must be an example and show that I am sincere in my message,” Moreno-Gama wrote, according to authorities.
Advocacy groups have issued dire warnings about the dangers of AI to society and condemned violence.
