U.S. marshals arrested Jonathan Munafo in the Richmond, Virginia area on Tuesday for absconding from supervision in the Northern District of New York. The arrest follows a probation officer's petition alleging a violation of his supervised release. Munafo has a history of threats and involvement in the January 6, 2021, U.S. Capitol insurrection.
Jonathan Munafo, previously convicted for threatening a 911 dispatcher and assaulting a police officer during the U.S. Capitol riot, faces new legal troubles after allegedly violating his probation conditions.
On January 5, 2021, Munafo called a 911 operator in Calhoun County, Michigan, from North Carolina and made explicit threats. According to a federal indictment in the Western District of Michigan, he said, "F— c—, you're gonna get hurt for this, you really will!" and escalated with, "B—, I'm gonna cut your throat. I'm gonna make you eat your f— nose." He referenced the "Insurrection Act" and added, "I'm coming to your door first, and it's public knowledge, you stupid, stupid b—!" In May 2022, Munafo pleaded guilty to making an interstate threatening communication and was sentenced in October 2022 to two years in prison followed by three years of supervised release.
The following day, January 6, 2021, Munafo joined supporters of then-President Donald Trump at the Capitol in Washington, D.C. A federal complaint details that around 3:20 p.m., he punched a Metropolitan Police Department officer twice while trying to take the officer's riot shield, causing the officer's head to snap back. Munafo then took the shield and moved into the crowd. Arrested on April 26, 2021, in Orlando, Florida, he pleaded guilty in spring 2023 to assaulting an officer and civil disorder. In September 2023, he received nearly three years in prison plus three years of supervised release. Trump pardoned him and about 1,500 other January 6 defendants on his first day in his second term.
After release from his Michigan sentence, Munafo, a New York resident, was transferred to the Northern District of New York's jurisdiction. Court records indicate that while in a New York jail, he flooded his cell, broke a sprinkler, and faked a medical emergency for attention. Released to probation, he allegedly fled to Virginia, prompting his recent arrest. He is scheduled for a preliminary hearing on Monday.
