Man who called Calhoun County 911 more than 140 times sentenced to prison
GRAND RAPIDS – The man who called Calhoun County 911 dispatchers more than 140 times and threatened to kill the dispatcher the day before the assault on the U.S. Capitol could spend two years in a federal prison for his intimidation.
On Wednesday, U.S . District Judge Janet Neff sentenced Jonathan Munafo, 35, to two years in prison and three years of supervised released for threatening emergency dispatch personnel and tying up an emergency phone line for three hours. He most recently lived in Florida.
Munafo pleaded guilty to the charges in May. He had faced up to five years in prison for communicating a threat in interstate commerce.
“Violence, threats of violence, or intimidation is never the answer,” U.S. Attorney Mark Totten said in a release issued by the U.S. Attorney’s Office. “My office will not tolerate this behavior, especially when it interferes with the life-saving duties of first responders and jeopardizes the public’s safety. Our public servants on the front lines should never be subjected to this type of harassment for simply doing their jobs.”
Munafo called the Calhoun County Sheriff’s Office on Jan. 5, 2021, demanding to speak to a sheriff’s deputy or sergeant, according to investigators. He identified himself as “Yankee Patriot” and aggressively badgered the dispatcher, investigators said.
The dispatcher’s supervisor had taken control of the call when Munafo became more threatening. According to investigator, he demanded a cop get on the phone “or it’s going to go way worse for your family.”
“I’m telling you, this isn’t a … threat, it’s a promise,” Munafo said, according to police. “I’m gonna cut your throat. I’m gonna make you eat your … nose. I’m gonna hurt you bad for this.”
Munafo made more than 140 calls to the dispatch center that day, even though the supervisor communicated that the line was needed for real emergency calls.
Calhoun County Sheriff’s Office and FBI investigators concluded Munafo placed the calls from a truck stop in North Carolina. The next day, Munafo participated in the Jan. 6, 2021, assault on the U.S. Capitol, police said.
Munafo has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Washington, D.C. for multiple offenses, including assaulting a U.S. Capitol police officer and disorderly conduct on Capitol grounds, among seven other counts.
He is supposed to appear at a future date in the District of Columbia to face those charges.
Contact Susan Vela at svela@lsj.com or 248-303-8432. Follow her on Twitter @susanvela.
This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Man sent to prison after calling Calhoun County 911 more than 140 times
