A Florida man was sentenced to two years in prison this week for making death threats against Rep. Eric Swalwell and his children late last year, federal prosecutors said.
Michael Shapiro, 73, was arrested in January in connection with the threats, which were contained in voicemail messages he left at Swalwell’s office on Dec. 19.
In one phone call, Shapiro said, “I’m going to come after you and kill you,” and in another call he said, “I’m going to come and kill your children,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida said in a statement Thursday.
Court documents show that Shapiro also referred to Swalwell, D-Calif., as “a Chinese spy” in some of the five voicemail messages.
Shapiro was sentenced in federal court on Wednesday, pleading guilty to one count of sending threatening communications on May 17.
Shapiro argued that the threatening phone calls were made during a “single drunken episode,” according to court documents. His attorney said he made the threats after a night of heavy drinking.
“When questioned, Mr. Shapiro stated that he only remembered calling the office once, but that he had been intoxicated and could not recall making any threats,” Shapiro’s attorney wrote in a pre-sentencing motion.
Prosecutors countered that Shapiro had made threatening comments to government officials in the past, including when he called the United States Capitol Police Threat Assessment Section in 2019 and said, “I’m going to kill you.”
In January 2019, he also threatened another U.S. representative. He was charged and pleaded guilty. He was given three years’ probation in that case, according to court documents.
“These threats are clearly part of a pattern of conduct in which Shapiro threatens and intimidates government officials,” prosecutors wrote in a motion in the case involving the threats against Swalwell.
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
