Charges: Crystal man harassed Fox 9 newsroom, threatened to kill staffers

A Crystal man allegedly made several harassing phone calls to the Fox 9 newsroom for years and also threatened to kill specific staffers, according to multiple felony charges.

Fremont Johnson Jr., 38, was charged Wednesday in Hennepin County District Court with four counts of felony terroristic threats and one count of felony stalking.

The charges accuse him of harassing members of the Eden Prairie station by using the newsroom's general phone line and prerecorded options to reach specific staffers.

"You crazy," Johnson allegedly said in a November 2018 in an expletive-laced message in which he threatened to murder a staffer.

The charges did not specify whether specific stories or topics may have prompted Johnson's phone calls, which police said occurred from 2017 through this month.

Johnson's family told authorities that he "has been out of control for years" and refused to get help. The complaint said Johnson's mother is his guardian but referred only to an "unstable mental condition."

Johnson, who was charged via arrest warrant, did not have an attorney listed for his case. Representatives of Fox 9 could not be immediately reached for comment.

According to the criminal complaint: Eden Prairie police responded to the Fox 9 newsroom last October on a report of threatening phone calls and voice mails. The newsroom had been dealing with threatening calls since 2017 but had been unable to track the origin of the calls until January 2018.

Police said they eventually tracked the phone number to Johnson's home in Crystal. When officers spoke to him this month about their investigation, Johnson allegedly said, "Ah yeah, man, they just gotta miss me, man."

Messages collected by police allegedly show Johnson threatening staffers with guns, machetes and rope.

In one message, he allegedly threatened to find out where a woman lived and follow her home. In another from earlier this month, he allegedly threatened to slit someone's throat.

Johnson's criminal record includes convictions for fifth-degree assault, lurking and disorderly conduct.

Chao Xiong • 612-270-4708

Twitter: @ChaoStrib