Santa Clarita / Antelope Valley : Former Sheriff’s Deputy Pleads Not Guilty in Fake Bomb Case

A former sheriff’s deputy pleaded not guilty Friday to charges of claiming to have a bomb in a briefcase he brought to a courthouse.

The contents of the briefcase brought to Newhall Municipal Court on Wednesday by James Drummond Collet turned out to be harmless, but a search of his Canyon Country home by authorities allegedly turned up numerous illegal weapons and paraphernalia.

Collet, 30, was arrested after telling deputies who wanted to examine his briefcase that it contained a bomb, said Deputy Dist. Atty. Dan Damon. Collet, who is in custody in lieu of $1 million bail, faces up to three years, eight months in state prison if convicted of the false bomb threat and making terrorist threats, Damon said.

The search of Collet’s home led to the seizure of nearly 40 guns, more than 10,000 rounds of ammunition and equipment to illegally modify weapons, sheriff’s deputies said. Charges related to these items will probably be brought by the U.S. attorney’s office instead of local authorities, Damon said.

“Their penalties are much more severe,” Damon said.

Federal officials have stated that possession of some of the weapons found at Collet’s house carries a mandatory 10-year federal prison sentence.

Collet was a sheriff’s deputy from 1986 until his retirement in 1993. Sheriff’s Department officials would not comment on why he retired at such a young age.

He was in the courthouse Wednesday for a hearing on charges that he had harassed customers and employees at a car dealership in March because he was unhappy with a truck he purchased there.