A man from Machesney Park, Illinois, has been sentenced to over three years in federal prison for making threats against law enforcement officers and illegal possession of firearms. Jacob Balabuszko, 28, confessed in a plea agreement that he threatened an FBI Task Force Officer and an FBI Special Agent after they interviewed him in 2020 and 2021 during an official investigation.
Balabuszko stated, "Next time you two come to my house unannounced, I'm going to shoot you on sight, that is a threat." He also made further threats in a Signal chat group, encouraging others to harm law enforcement officers by killing them and collecting their badges, shooting out their tires, and burning down their homes. The plea agreement revealed that Balabuszko was capable of carrying out these threats due to his illegal possession of firearms, ammunition, and body armor at his residence.
U.S. District Judge Iain D. Johnston sentenced Balabuszko to 41 months in federal prison. This sentence was announced by Morris Pasqual, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, alongside Douglas S. DePodesta, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago Field Office of the FBI. The Illinois State Police were involved in the investigation as well. Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert S. Ladd represented the government.