A Florida man was sentenced to two years in jail this week after threatening to kill Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., and his children late last year, according to federal authorities.
Michael Shapiro, 73, was arrested in January in connection with the threats, which he left on voicemail at Swalwell’s office on December 19.
In one call, Shapiro claimed, “I’m gonna come after you and kill you,” and in another, “I’m gonna come and kill your children,” according to a statement released Thursday by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida.
Shapiro reportedly referred to Swalwell as “a Chinese spy” in several of the five voicemail messages, according to court filings.
Shapiro was sentenced in federal court on Wednesday. On May 17, he pled guilty to one count of threatening communications.
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Shapiro said that the threatening calls were made during a “single drunken episode,” according to court filings. His defense attorney claimed he made the threats following a night of heavy drinking.
“When interviewed, Mr. Shapiro said he only remembered phoning the office once, but that he had been drunk and did not remember making any threats,” Shapiro’s attorney argued in a request before sentence.
Prosecutors stated that Shapiro had previously made threatening comments to government personnel, including in 2019, when he called the US Capitol Police Threat Assessment Section and threatened, “I’m going to kill you.”
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In January 2019, he threatened another United States representative. He was prosecuted, pleaded guilty, and sentenced to three years probation, according to court documents.
“These threats are part of a pattern of conduct whereby Shapiro threatens and intimidates government officials,” prosecutors stated in a motion in the Swalwell case.