A 74-year-old Spokane man is sitting in jail after police say he repeatedly phoned a Florida retirement community and former President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago club with threatening messages.
Officers arrested Robert Martindale on Saturday and booked him into the Spokane County Jail on suspicion of making threats to bomb or injure property, a Class B felony. He remained in custody while investigators worked to verify what was said in the calls and how serious the threats might be.
According to Spokane police, deputies with the Sumter County Sheriff's Office in Florida traced a series of threatening calls to a phone number in Spokane and contacted local officers at about 10:40 a.m. Saturday, as reported by KHQ. Federal Secret Service agents also asked Spokane police to reach out to the man, the outlet noted, turning what started as phone calls from Washington state into a multi-agency investigation.
When officers contacted Martindale, he admitted placing multiple calls to The Villages, a massive retirement community in Florida, and said his messages were "not a threat, but a warning," according to FOX 28 Spokane. The station reported that he was allegedly upset about Trump's recent visit there. Investigators confirmed the phone number matched the one used to place the calls.
Felony Charge And Jail Custody
Spokane police ultimately arrested Martindale on a charge of threats to bomb or injure property, which is classified as a Class B felony, and booked him into the Spokane County Jail, according to KXLY. The outlet reported that he remained in custody on Saturday as detectives continued their work on the case.
Why The Secret Service Got Involved
Because the calls allegedly targeted Mar-a-Lago, a property closely tied to a former president, the Secret Service was pulled into the investigation and asked Spokane police to make contact with the caller, according to FOX 28 Spokane. It is a textbook example of how a local case can quickly cross state lines and bring federal agencies into the mix when high-profile locations are mentioned.
Spokane police did not immediately release further details beyond the arrest and booking, KHQ reported. The investigation remained active over the weekend as detectives reviewed evidence and documented Martindale's alleged phone contacts.
