Hoax Bomb Threat Targets Home of Pope Leo's Brother, But It Turns Out to Be Fake
A bomb threat was directed at the home of John Prevost, brother of Pope Leo XIV, who resides in the Chicago area in the United States. This incident occurred after US President Donald Trump verbally attacked Pope Leo, the leader of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics, over his criticism of the war waged by the US against Iran.
The bomb threat, as reported by The Hill and Reuters on Friday (17 April 2026), took place at John Prevost’s home in the New Lenox area of Chicago, Illinois, on Wednesday (15 April) evening. Prevost lives on the same street identified as the location of the threat by local police.
The New Lenox Police Department acknowledged the bomb threat at the residence in its statement. However, the department also stated that after a thorough inspection, the threat was deemed baseless. Bomb-sniffing dogs were deployed for the effort.
“After a careful examination, investigators determined that the threat was unfounded and no explosive devices or hazardous materials were found,” said the New Lenox Police Department.
No injuries were reported from the incident. Local residents, who had been evacuated to a safe location at the request of police, were allowed to return to their homes.
The perpetrator and motive behind the bomb threat remain unclear. Police are still investigating the proven hoax.
“This incident remains under investigation, with local authorities working to determine the origin of the report. Filing false reports like this is a serious offence and can lead to criminal charges,” emphasised the New Lenox Police Department in its statement.
The bomb threat emerged after Trump, on Sunday (12 April), attacked Pope Leo, the first US-born pontiff, over his criticism of the war in Iran. Pope Leo, whose full name is Robert Francis Prevost, hails from Chicago.
Although Trump criticised Pope Leo as too liberal and “weak on crime”, he praised the Pope’s eldest brother, Louis Prevost, who lives in Florida. Trump claimed Louis supports the MAGA movement.
“Louis is a full MAGA supporter. He gets it, and Leo doesn’t!” Trump said in one of his social media posts.
Pope Leo, who leads the Catholic Church with 1.4 billion members worldwide, has emerged as a vocal critic of war. In a strongly worded statement in Cameroon on Thursday (16 April), Pope Leo condemned leaders who spend billions of US dollars on war.
Pope Leo also described the world as “being destroyed by a handful of tyrants”.