A Holyoke man who worked as a corrections officer in Connecticut has pleaded guilty to multiple charges related to his harassment of an FBI special agent in South Carolina on messaging apps over the course of several weeks around the beginning of the year.
According to the FBI and court documents, Scott Robert Tardy, 31, made numerous posts on the messaging apps Kik and Telegram between Jan. 5 and Feb. 13 of this year. Tardy posted in “anti-government and anti-law enforcement” groups, displaying animosity toward the agent, only identified in court documents with the initials “B.S.” and his spouse.
Under the usernames “connecticut12345” and “slimybanana,” Tardy posted about wanting to throw a Molotov cocktail in the agent’s home while they were asleep “and hearing [one victim] cook to death,” according to court documents. The documents also state Tardy shared a map showing the agent’s home address and photographs of the agent’s spouse.
The FBI opened an investigation into the origin of the posts, determining that Tardy had been the person behind the usernames. When the FBI executed a federal search warrant at Tardy’s apartment Feb. 16, he denied ever using the Kik or Telegram apps and he denied responsibility for the solicitations and messages, according to the agency. He gave further false statements in an interview with investigators, reset his phone to clear its contents and purchased a new phone, according to the statement put out by the FBI.
However, federal investigators stated they managed to recover the map of the agent’s home from an account associated with Tardy. Data related to the Kik and Telegram accounts showed that Tardy controlled the accounts. During the time of the posts, Tardy worked as a corrections officer at a detention facility in Connecticut.
On May 20, Tardy agreed to plead guilty to charges of cyberstalking, providing false statements to the FBI, and obstruction of justice. He faces a penalty of up to 20 years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000 and five years of supervision by the U.S. Probation Office to follow a term of imprisonment. As a condition of his release, Tardy must surrender his passport, stay off social media, and may travel only between the states of Connecticut, Massachusetts and South Carolina.
U.S. District Judge Joseph F. Anderson Jr. accepted Tardy’s guilty plea and will sentence the defendant after receiving and reviewing a sentencing report prepared by the U.S. Probation Office.
Alexander MacDougall can be reached at amacdougall@gazettenet.com.
