Accused ISIS plotter Jessica Bowie made numerous violent threats against her roommates, including threats to “bomb this whole place down” and poison their food, her former housemates told The Post. Bowie, 35, allegedly engaged in a months-long period of disturbing behavior in their Albany apartment from January to July.
Her roommates, Zephyr Brennan and Ivory Thomas, described Bowie as a radicalized individual who played Islamic prayers at all hours and concealed her identity in head-to-toe Islamic garb. Thomas stated she called the Albany Police Department seven times to report death threats and Bowie's erratic behavior, but that officers were unable to take action.
One incident described by Thomas involved Bowie allegedly saying, “Do you know how easy it is to put rat poison in your food, f—ts?” when she believed she was home alone. Another time, after a dispute over garbage, Bowie allegedly threatened to kill Thomas, leading to another police call. Officers responded but could not speak with Bowie, who refused to leave her room.
Thomas also reported Bowie to a child protective service agency after Bowie's 11-year-old son, who did not live with them, allegedly harmed her cat. Bowie reportedly allowed the child to smoke marijuana and Black and Mild cigars during his visits.
Landlord attempts to relocate Bowie to another apartment with fellow Muslims were unsuccessful, as those tenants reportedly refused to live with her after she became aggressive over a joke. Bowie was eventually evicted from the Hudson Avenue townhouse in July for not paying rent.
Brennan, who had known Bowie for years before her conversion to Islam, stated that Bowie was previously a writer, artist, and mother who had battled schizophrenia and heroin addiction. Brennan said Bowie was candid about her schizophrenia diagnosis. However, Brennan did not recognize Bowie when they lived together because Bowie wore a niqab at home and Brennan only knew her as "Jessica." Bowie reportedly revealed her identity to Brennan by using her “dead name” and became aggressive when confronted about her rent non-payment.
Following her eviction, Bowie left behind items including a book titled “Artificial Terrorists and Muslim Entrapment After 9/11,” with faces of US Marshals and suspected terrorists blacked out. Her belongings, including notebooks, were seized by the FBI following her arrest.
Bowie allegedly joined ISIS via social media earlier this year after a recruiter instructed her to pledge allegiance to the group's leader. Court documents indicate Bowie told an FBI informant, whom she believed to be an ISIS handler, that she would kill her roommates if they discovered her plot. Federal authorities allege Bowie purchased bomb-making materials from a Home Depot on August 5, while wearing a burqa, and planned to attack the Capitol building with accomplices who turned out to be FBI informants. She was arrested on August 19 and charged with attempting to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization.