A California man has pleaded guilty in federal court to charges of cyberstalking and interstate transmission of threats to injure, stemming from a campaign of violent threats directed at a Florida resident and his family.
Robert B. McDougal, 29, pleaded guilty in Tampa, Florida, and now faces a maximum penalty of 25 years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not yet been set.
According to court documents, McDougal began making threats against the victim and his family members in July 2020. These threats were communicated through numerous public social media posts.
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One particularly graphic example cited in court documents is a video posted by McDougal on his Facebook page on August 17, 2020, in which he stated: “…I swear to God, [victim]… everyone at [victim’s employer], I’m gonna to f—king slaughter all of you, I am gonna fucking set your whole family on fire, I am gonna f—ing knife off the limbs of every f—ing family member, I’m gonna f—ing murder you all.” The video concluded with a threat to decapitate the victim’s children.
On January 28, 2021, McDougal was served with an injunction ordering him to cease making these posts. However, he continued to make violent and graphic threats to kill the victim and his family until March 2024.
For example, in October 2023, McDougal posted a video on his YouTube channel threatening to “skin [the victim] alive” and “hurt” the victim’s children. In March 2024, he made an online post threatening to torture, skin, mutilate, and kill the victim.
The Pasco Sheriff’s Office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) investigated the case. Assistant United States Attorney Karyna Valdes and Special Assistant United States Attorney Joseph Wheeler, III, are prosecuting the case.
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