Terrorism in Michigan

I've been to four or five weddings at this church. What happened here really caught my eye.

If you are an anti-gunner, please tell me what you would do in this situation, before the police nabbed the bad guy. Please tell me how a firearm wouldn't be a part of your self-defense.

This happened in Troy, a suburb of north of Detroit. These threats occurred during the same time period as when another disgruntled employee shot up an accounting office just a few miles away.

A displaced music director at the Evanswood Church of God faces four terrorism-related charges over e-mail threats to conduct a "Columbine or Virginia Tech type killing" aimed at 13 church members, police said.

Roy Owen Yaryan, 56, of Rochester Hills, was arraigned Tuesday and is held in lieu of $750,000 cash bond pending his preliminary exam in Troy's 52-4 District Court.

Troy Police Lt. Gerry Scherlinck said Yaryan sent out e-mails under the name of Evanswood Church of God Pastor A.C. Phipps while describing himself as having a Doctor Jekyll and Mr. Hyde personality.

"The e-mail indicated the recipients were about to see his Mr. Hyde side, as he was planning a Columbine or Virginia Tech-type killing at services the follow Sunday (April 29)," Scherlinck said.

Church officials at the 150 member congregation at 2601 Square Lake Road cancelled the services, but have reopened since Yaryan's arrest, an unidentified woman at the church said.

A worker at the church said Phipps was out-of-state and on vacation.

However, the church did issue a statement reading: "Thank you for your concern for our congregation at Evanswood Church of God. We understand from Troy Police that an arrest has been made and their investigation continues. We view this as a time of healing for our congregation and the families involved."

A church Web site said Phipps joined the church in June2004 and has served 35 years as pastor at churches in Texas, Michigan and Pennsylvania.

Scherlinck said Yaryan had some "internal grudge" with the Evanswood Church of God pastor and the church's leadership team.

"My understanding is that he was the music director and they replaced him," Scherlinck said. "But there were other things he also didn't agree with."

Yaryan, Scherlinck said, took elaborate steps to disguise his computer trail from the victims.

"We have a forensic computer investigator who found software and encryptions," Scherlinck said. "(Yaryan) sent e-mails out of the country and back to victims to protect his identity."

Troy police executed a search warrant at Yaryan's residence on April 27 and confiscated two computers while no one was home, Scherlinck said.

Then on April 28, several members of the congregation received another threatening e-mail allegedly from Yaryan purporting to be the pastor. It contained the names of 13 church members indicating he intended to kill them, Scherlinck said.

The e-mail message indicated the sender knew the church had closed, but it was his intent to "engage in a mass killing whenever the church doors were re-opened," Scherlinck said.

Soon afterwards, police executed a second search warrant at Yaryan's house and found him inside with another computer that he tried to hide,

Scherlinck said. Police arrested Yaryan and confiscated the computer. Yaryan called the threats a "prank," Scherlinck said.

Oakland County Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Paul Walton described the accusations against Yaryan as "very, very serious."

"I know his assertions will be he never intended (to carry out) this," Walton said. "But that is irrelevant. The crime occurred when the threat was made. The defendant has effectively terrorized a small church. He did this on April 25 and April 28 and both times he reported he would kill specific people."

Walton said Yaryan is married. Yaryan doesn't appear to have a previous criminal record, Walton added.

Yaryan is charged with two counts of false report or threat of terrorism and two counts of using a computer to commit a false report or threat of terrorism. All are felonies, punishable by up to 20 years in prison.

The alleged threats follow three workplace shootings on April 9 at Gordon Advisors, 1301 Long Lake Road, Troy.