A 50-year-old Nikiski resident was arrested Wednesday after troopers say he made a series of threats to Nikiski Pool staff both in person and by voicemail.
John Sochor was charged with second-degree terroristic threatening, third- and fourth-degree assault and fourth- and fifth-degree misconduct involving weapons for threats made to the Nikiski Pool on Dec. 11, 13 and 17, as well as threats made to the Kenai Peninsula Borough Mayor’s Office on Dec. 13 and 16, according to a trooper dispatch published Thursday.
An affidavit included with charging documents says that troopers were first told of the threats by North Peninsula Recreation Service Area Director Eric Eleton on Tuesday. Eleton provided voicemail recordings where Sochor threatens to “gun you … down” and “burn the … truck down to ashes.” Similar threats, directed at the pool, were made in voicemails received by the borough mayor’s office.
Eleton told troopers he was concerned that Sochor might follow through on his threats, the affidavit says.
Sochor’s first described interaction with pool staff is a confrontation on Dec. 11, where staff believed he was armed. Troopers were told that Sochor claimed to have a gun and made an effort to brandish it — though staff told him weapons are allowed to be carried at the pool.
On Dec. 13, Sochor again was “agitated” when staff asked about a dog he brought to the pool. Sochor said it was a support animal, but then claimed that the lifeguards had guns, Eleton told troopers — though that claim was later found to be in reference to handheld radios carried by staff.
On Dec. 17, the same day that Eleton reported Sochor to troopers, the affidavit says pool staff locked their office doors and hid inside when they recognized Sochor arriving at the pool, though the affidavit doesn’t describe Sochor’s behavior or whether there were any other people in the building.
Troopers arrested Sochor on the side of the Kenai Spur Highway on Dec. 18. They found a concealed firearm on his left hip. He told troopers, per the affidavit, that he didn’t know what he had said in voicemails, but that they probably included threats to gun down staff and burn a truck.
Sochor was arraigned on Thursday, where he submitted a not guilty plea. Bail is set at $10,000 cash appearance bond and $7,500 cash performance bond. He’s next scheduled for a preliminary hearing at the Kenai Courthouse on Dec. 27.
Reach reporter Jake Dye at jacob.dye@peninsulaclarion.com.
