IOWA CITY (AP) — A serial arsonist made phone calls from jail in which he falsely claimed to have knowledge of the whereabouts of the two Iowa girls who vanished four months ago and warned the search for them would be unsuccessful, federal prosecutors allege in a new court filing.

Shawn P. Gant made the calls to the U.S. Attorney’s Office from a pay phone at the Linn County Jail on Aug. 30 and Sept. 4, leaving messages in which he claimed insight into the disappearance of Lyric Cook and Elizabeth Collins, according to the filing.

“The caller claimed to know the location of the two girls abducted in Evansdale and stated that they would never be found,” according to the Nov. 9 filing by assistant U.S. Attorney C.J. Williams.