A Lancaster man will serve up to a decade in prison for stalking a man with a series of threatening calls regarding his termination years ago from a local company.
Lewis T. Watkins, 61, was convicted at a June trial of misdemeanor counts of stalking and making terroristic threats regarding the contact in September and October 2016.
On Tuesday, Lancaster County Judge Margaret Miller ordered Watkins serve 3 to 10 years in prison.
Assistant District Attorney Travis S. Anderson, who won the conviction, presented testimony at trial of threatening calls Watkins made to the victim, a director of human resources at the Manheim Township company.
In court Tuesday, Anderson said for the sake of protecting the community Watkins needs to serve a state-prison sentence.
Judge Miller ordered that, after Watkins made statements of how he still deserves certain pieces of information from the company that terminated him.
Judge Miller said although the crimes are misdemeanors, they go to the heart of another person’s sense of safety and well-being.
Anderson also played at trial over a dozen voicemail messages Watkins left for the victim, who was not even working for the company when Watkins was terminated in 2012.
Watkins threatened to show up at the business or the victim’s home and doing something to “make the news,” according to testimony.
Watkins repeatedly said he had “nothing whatsoever to lose” and was not concerned about potential consequences of his actions.
The company had to increase security measures at the facility and hired private guards to watch the victim’s home.
Manheim Township police Officer Jared McArthur filed charges.
MEDIA CONTACT: Brett A. Hambright, 717-295-2041; bhambright@co.lancaster.pa.us; Twitter: @BrettHambright