Former Dakota News Now reporter pleads guilty in Gov. Kristi Noem prank call case

A former Dakota News Now capitol bureau reporter received a suspended imposition of sentence Tuesday afternoon after pleading guilty to a count of disorderly conduct, stemming from charges alleging he made a prank call to the former chair of the South Dakota Republican Party using Gov. Kristi Noem's personal cell phone number.

Austin Goss, 26, pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct in that he did cause a serious public inconvenience, annoyance or alarm or created a risk, a Class 2 misdemeanor. Goss was sentenced to pay court costs and state fines totaling more than $570.

Goss was originally charged with a Class 1 misdemeanor of making threatening, harassing or misleading contacts, a charge that's punishable by up to a year in county jail or $2,000 in fines or both, according to an arrest warrant issued May. He turned himself into the Stanley County Sheriff’s Department last Thursday, and was released later that day on a personal recognizance bond.

More: South Dakota reporter arrested, fired for using Gov. Kristi Noem's phone number to make prank call

"Mr. Goss wants to apologize to the law enforcement officers who devoted limited resources to the matter. He also has reached out directly to the governor and the recipient of the call," his attorney Jason Glodt said in a statement to the Argus Leader after the court hearing Tuesday. "Austin would also like to thank everyone who has contacted him and offered support. The outpouring of prayers and kind words has shown Austin and his family just how blessed they are."

A probable cause statement written by a special agent with the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation said a 50-year-old individual with the initials D.L. reported to the South Dakota Highway Patrol that he received a "harassing phone call," at about 8:30 p.m. Jan 22.

Dan Lederman, the former chair of the South Dakota Republican Party, previously confirmed to the Argus Leader that he was the recipient of the call on the day after Goss was released but had no further comment.

The call was a pre-recorded prank call from the website PrankDial, titled "Mafia Guy Got Vaccines," in which a mafia member angrily accuses the recipient of the call of stealing boxes of vaccines stashed in a basement.

'You telling me, you didn't tell Vito, that you were going to try to move the three boxes of that AstraZeneca outside this family? You saying you ain't said that?" the pre-recorded phone call reportedly said, according to an affidavit.

The call ends "You've just been pranked by PrankDial.com."

In the statement, Glodt said the call was intended as a practical joke.

"I believe it is unfortunate he was charged in the first place, but appreciate the willingness of the State’s Attorney to reduce the charge," Glodt said.

Investigators were able to provide a subpoena of PrankDial and Midcontinent Communications, where they were able to determine the IP address belonged to Goss in his home, and had been used to make the call. Investigators then determined probable cause existed to determined Goss made the calls to "harass or annoy" D.L, according to documents.

A day later, Noem announced she was urging both the United States Attorney General and multiple congressional committees to investigate the leaking of her family's personal information, including her personal cell phone number. That phone number had been hacked to make hoax phone calls that the governor had no involvement in, according to a press release sent by Noem's office in January.

The urgent ask followed news the week prior to the prank call, when Noem's office urged the United States Attorney General to investigate why her and her family's social security numbers were leaked when the House Select Committee on the Jan. 6 Investigation released their findings.

More: Gov. Kristi Noem's personal cellphone hacked, according to office

It remains unclear whether the incidents are directly connected.In a joint statement the same day of his arrest, Dakota News Now and KOTA Territory News, who employed Goss, announced his termination.

“We learned of the incident involving Austin Goss late last night. Once we gathered the facts, we decided to terminate his employment with our stations," the statement read. "Dakota News Now and KOTA Territory were unaware of Mr. Goss’ activities and deeply regret the lack of judgment he showed, which violated our policies and is contrary to our commitment to the highest standards of journalistic integrity.”

This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: Austin Goss pleads guilty in SD Gov. Kristi Noem prank call case