Fries Man Gets 42 Months for Threatening Feds

ABINGDON, Va. – Jonathan Reed Stiltner, 50, of Fries, Virginia, will spend the next 42 months in federal prison after being sentenced today for a brazen campaign of threats directed at multiple federal officials. The threats were mailed while Stiltner was already behind bars facing state felony charges in Dickenson County, demonstrating a chilling disregard for the justice system.

Stiltner pled guilty in March 2025 to one count of mailing threats to injure officers of the United States. Court documents detail a series of handwritten letters filled with violent promises, targeting a federal judge, an Assistant United States Attorney, a federal probation officer, and a public defender from the Federal Public Defender’s Office.

“Every day, judges, the judiciary staff, prosecutors, and public defenders work for the American justice system and should be free to do their work for our great Nation without fear of violence or retaliation,” stated Acting United States Attorney Robert N. Tracci. “This office will aggressively prosecute those who attack our justice system by threatening violence against those who serve it.” Tracci’s office clearly isn’t messing around.

The letters weren’t empty boasts. On November 13, 2023, Stiltner penned a particularly disturbing message, explicitly stating his intent to unleash violence if his demands weren’t met. “Although Im (sic) incarcerated I still have people on the street who can do things and if Im (sic) not charged federally ASAP as I was told I would be Im (sic) going to send people to pay [specific government officials] visits,” he wrote. He punctuated the threat with a chilling question: “Does someone have to get hurt to prove Im (sic) very serious.”

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) led the investigation, with assistance from the U.S. Marshals. Special Agent in Charge Anthony A. Spotswood of the ATF’s Washington Field Division worked alongside Tracci to bring Stiltner to justice. This case underscores the very real danger faced by those who uphold the law, even from within prison walls.

This sentencing sends a clear message: threatening federal officials won’t be tolerated. Robert N. Tracci, Acting United States Attorney for the Western District of Virginia, and Spotswood made the announcement. Stiltner’s 42-month sentence is a stark reminder that actions have consequences, even when plotted from a jail cell.