Vinalhaven Man Convicted of Making Interstate Threats

Portland, Maine:  United States Attorney Halsey B. Frank announced that Eric Malmstrom, 40, of Vinalhaven, Maine, was convicted yesterday following a one-day jury trial in U.S. District Court of transmitting threatening interstate communications.

The evidence at trial revealed that on three occasions in February and March, Malmstrom placed telephone calls to an employee of the Swedish embassy in Washington, D.C., threatening to slit the employee’s throat. Between September 2017 and March 2018, Malmstrom placed hundreds of calls to the embassy and to the employee.

Malmstrom faces up to five years in prison, a $250,000 fine and up to three years of supervised release. He will be sentenced after the completion of a presentence investigation report by the U.S. Probation Office.

“Threats made against public officials, whether those of the United States or of foreign governments serving their citizens in this country, cannot be taken lightly,” said U.S. Attorney Frank. “People who make such threats should expect to be caught, charged and prosecuted.”

“The Diplomatic Security Service is firmly committed to ensuring the safety and security of foreign diplomats in the United States,” said Bart Brown, director of DSS’s Office of Protective Intelligence Investigations. “This case is the result of a joint DSS investigation with the U.S. Secret Service and the Knox County Sheriff’s Department.”