Federal prosecutors announced that a New York man has pleaded guilty to making threatening phone calls to Republican Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia.
Joseph Morelli, 51, admitted making threats of harm to Green at his Washington, D.C. office in March 2022, the US attorney’s office in Syracuse said in a news release Wednesday.
According to prosecutors, in one voicemail message, Morelli said, “I’m going to hurt you. Physically, I’m going to hurt you.” In another, prosecutors said, he tried to “take a baseball bat and crack your skull.” In the third call, Morelli said he would “make sure that, even if they lock me up, someone is going to get you, because I will pay them,” prosecutors said. Told.
Morelli, of Endicott, New York, was indicted in April 2022 on three counts of transmitting interstate threatening communications. Endicott is a village located approximately 10 miles (16 km) west of the city of Binghamton.
Prosecutors said Morelli pleaded guilty Wednesday and faces up to five years in prison and fines of up to $250,000 when he is sentenced June 1.
A message seeking comment was left with Morelli’s attorney at the federal public defender’s office.
Green, who was first elected to Congress in 2020, has been criticized for espousing conspiracy theories and suggesting that former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi should be executed for treason.
A phone message seeking comment on Morelli’s guilty plea was left with Greene’s office.