Department of Justice

U.S. Attorney’s Office

Northern District of Ohio

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Thursday, October 20, 2016

Warren man sentenced to a year in prison for mailing white powder to former employer

A Warren man was sentenced to one year and one day of incareceration for mailing an envelope containing white powder to his former workplace, said Carole S. Rendon, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio, and Stephen D. Anthony, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Cleveland Office.

Anthony J. Natale, 38, previously pleaded guilty to with one count of conveying false information related to the use of a weapon of mass destruction.

Natale mailed an envelope containing white powder via the United States Postal Service to American Business Center, at 7677 South Avenue, Youngstown, on November 10, 2014.  This was done with the intent to convey false and misleading information related to the use of a weapon of mass destruction, according to court documents.

Natale formerly worked at American Business Center. He was terminated on Oct. 6, 2014, according to court documents.

He was ordered to pay $9,834.13 to the victim company, and $14,361.90 to the first responders. He will also serve three years of probation and pay a $100 special assessment.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin Seabury Gould, and was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Mahoning County Sheriff's Office. 

An indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt.  A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.