PHOENIX – A man pleaded guilty Tuesday to making online threats against federal officials, authorities said.
Michael Lee Tomasi, 37, used social media to send threats against a state court judge, a member of Congress, a district attorney, federal agents and police officers.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona, the threats occurred between May 2021 and November 2023, when Tomasi lived in Colorado and Arizona.
“This disgruntled defendant threatened officials from all three branches of government,” said U.S. Attorney Gary Restaino for the District of Arizona in a press release. “Moreover, he was prepared to carry out his threats: when he was arrested, he had a loaded handgun in his vehicle and additional firearms and body armor in his home.”
Tomasi, a resident of Rio Verde, pleaded guilty to threatening FBI agents on August 26, 2023, saying, “Shoot the FBI first and ask questions later. … If anyone from the FBI has a problem with this, come to my house and see what happens. Shoot before they even pull their guns out of the trunk and shoot to kill.”
Tomasi will be sentenced on October 23 and faces a maximum of ten years in prison.
The case is being investigated by the FBI.
