A 27-year-old New York man who made violent threats against the state’s attorney general and a judge over their roles in a civil case against former President Donald Trump will not serve any jail time, following a plea agreement that reduced his charges.
Tyler J. Vogel was sentenced Monday to one year of conditional discharge by State Supreme Court Justice M. William Boller after pleading guilty to a misdemeanor charge of second-degree aggravated harassment. The sentence comes after Vogel completed an interim probation program and complied with court-ordered mental health treatment.
Vogel had previously pleaded guilty in April 2024 to a felony charge of making a terroristic threat and a misdemeanor count of threatening mass harm. However, under the terms of his plea deal, successful completion of the program allowed him to withdraw those admissions and plead to a lesser offense.
In addition to staying out of legal trouble, Vogel must continue counseling as part of his sentence. Final orders of protection were issued for New York Attorney General Letitia James and Supreme Court Justice Arthur Engoron, and will remain in effect for five years.
Threats Over Trump Asset Seizure
Vogel was arrested in March 2024 after sending threatening messages to both James and Engoron, who were involved in the high-profile civil fraud case that led to a multimillion-dollar judgment against Donald Trump and the seizure of some of his assets.
According to prosecutors, Vogel texted AG James on March 24, 2024, warning her to “cease action” against Trump or face “death and physical harm.” He also sent similar threats to Judge Engoron, attempting to intimidate or coerce him into halting the enforcement of the court’s ruling.
Vogel allegedly obtained private contact details for both officials through a paid online background check service — a step prosecutors said demonstrated his intent to carry out the threats if his demands weren’t met.
In one of his messages to James, Vogel wrote: “You are not to permanently steal Donald Trump’s assets or his property. Furthermore, you are not to imprison Donald Trump.”
He also claimed to have a “whole wall of deadly weapons” at his disposal and told the judge he would respond with “deadly force.”
“Mark my words, I will kill you if you even dare to permanently steal Donald Trump’s assets or his property,” Vogel wrote, according to the criminal complaint.
Arrest and Potential Prison Time
Vogel was arrested on March 25, 2024, and held at the Erie County Holding Center. At the time, Erie County District Attorney John Flynn noted that Vogel faced up to seven years in prison if convicted on the original charges.
Instead, with his completion of mental health court mandates and a clean record during interim probation, Vogel’s charges were downgraded, allowing him to avoid incarceration.
Prosecutors emphasized that while Vogel avoided prison, the protective orders and counseling requirements reflect the seriousness of the threats made against public officials.
