SEATTLE — A Seattle firefighter was charged Wednesday with cyberstalking and identity theft in connection with threats sent to Councilmember Kshama Sawant from another firefighter's email address.
Andrew Finseth told investigators that he was targeting his firefighter colleague and wrote the threats to try to get his colleague punished, according to court documents.
King County Prosecuting Attorney's Office filed two counts of cyberstalking, a misdemeanor, and one count of second-degree identity theft, a felony, against Finseth, 42.
Finseth was arrested last week while coming off duty. Finseth, who was named Seattle Firefighter of the Year in 2018, was placed on paid administrative leave, according to the fire department.
In January Sawant said she had received threats from an email address that appeared to belong to a Seattle Fire Department employee.
The first of multiple emails sent over several months said, in part: "If you need help leaving, try jumping head first off the top floor of your building. I’ll even come push you.”
According to court documents, the firefighter whose email account was used learned that his email was hacked when supervisors asked him about a transfer request he did not make.
Despite changing his password, the email account was accessed several times. He also saw the threats to Sawant in his account and he told his supervisors he did not send them.
The city's information technology department and police department investigated and said there was evidence that the firefighter's email was accessed from Finseth's home and church.
After being arrested, Finseth told investigators he wanted the other firefighte to be held accountable by the chain of command and he sent the messages to Sawant because the colleague lives in her district.
The court documents note that the fire department had investigated possible negative interactions between the two firefighters in the past, including an alleged physical altercation, but that investigation was inconclusive.