An Arizona man, identified as Michael Lee Tomasi, 38, of Rio Verde, received a 15-month prison sentence for his online threats against various public servants, including federal officials. The sentence was handed down followed by a three-year term of supervised release; additionally, the ruling mandated the forfeiture of Tomasi's firearms collection, which included an assault rifle, a handgun, a shotgun, and ammunition. Convicting Tomasi, the court honed in on a specific post from August 26, 2023, where he threatened to kill FBI agents, according to a Department of Justice press release.
When announcing the verdict, Attorney General Merrick B. Garland expressed gratitude towards the FBI, highlighting Tomasi's threats to execute and sexually assault agents and employees. FBI Director Christopher Wray asserted the seriousness law enforcement places on threats against their own, stating they will rigorously pursue those who threaten public servants or impede their duties, while U.S. Attorney Gary Restaino for the District of Arizona pointed out the difference between civil discourse and violence incitement, vowing to prosecute the latter aggressively.
Tomasi's online behavior, tracked from May 2021 through November 2023, was not isolated to the threat that culminated in his conviction; his social media showed a pattern of menacing communications directed at a city district attorney, a state court judge, and even a member of Congress. His guilty plea stemmed from a chilling message where he advocated for preemptive violence against law enforcement, writing: “Shoot the FBI first and ask questions later. . . . Any FBI [] have a problem with that[,] come to my house and see what happens. Shoot before they even pull their guns out of their trunk and you shoot to kill,” in a statement obtained by the DOJ press release.
This case was investigated by the FBI, with Assistant U.S. Attorneys Raymond K. Woo and Abbie Broughton Marsh for the District of Arizona leading the prosecution efforts, supplemented by Trial Attorney Dmitriy Slavin of the National Security Division's Counterterrorism Section.
