A local man who previously went to jail for threatening a police officer is now accused of threatening to kill the mayor.
Court documents show that Tyler Kennedy, 39, is facing criminal charges after he allegedly used telecommunications to threaten the life of Sault Mayor Matthew Shoemaker.
Sault Ste. Marie Police Service announced the charges in a news release that was issued last week without naming Shoemaker as the alleged victim.
Police say officers responded to a call on July 24 after the threats were posted on an online platform.
“An investigation revealed the accused attended a location frequented by the victim to intimidate them, and used public platforms to share threatening materials directed at the victim,” police said in the release.
Village Media, which operates SooToday, alerted police on July 24 after moderators intercepted a comment that appeared to be threatening.
Police executed a warrant for Kennedy’s arrest on Aug. 13 after officers spotted him walking along Pilgrim Street.
Kennedy is charged with:
Indecent communications
Intimidation of a justice system participant
Uttering threats to cause death or bodily harm
A breach of recognizance charge has since been withdrawn, court documents show.
None of the allegations have been tested in court and Kennedy is considered innocent until proven guilty.
Kennedy made headlines in July 2024 when he pleaded guilty to threatening to cause death to a Sault Police officer in a local Facebook group.
The court heard that Kennedy posted the cop’s photograph on his Facebook page on March 29, 2024.
Above the photo of the constable were these words “big donation to the city of Sault Ste. Marie, Sault Area Hospital and food bank if he turns up dead.”
He also was convicted of assault with a weapon for his actions two days before the threat when he struck a man with an iron sand wedge at a downtown coffee shop, as well as two counts of breaching a probation order.
Ontario Court Justice John Condon heard Kennedy posted the threat at 9 a.m. and it was shared in the Facebook group called Keeping The Soo Safe.
It came on the heels of a March 27 incident at the Tim Hortons on Bay Street, where Kennedy became involved in a verbal altercation with another man.
“He was swinging the golf club around multiple times,” and struck the victim on his left hand and right wrist, prosecutor Chris Thompson said.
The officer made some comments and his actions upset Kennedy, the defence said, and posting the photo was “a poor reaction on his part.”
Kennedy apologized for his actions, indicating he has taken an anger management program while in custody.
“Your conduct towards the officer was more than a reaction, you sought out a photo of him, and invited people to harm him, ” the judge told Kennedy.
Police officers’ jobs are “hard enough without foolish actions such as yours,” Condon added.
When he imposed the sentence, Condon noted the accused’s lengthy criminal record — “full of violence” with a number of convictions for assault, including one for assault with a weapon in 2022.
Kennedy now finds himself in trouble with the law again, with three criminal charges naming the mayor of Sault Ste. Marie as his target.
While his bail has been set, Kennedy now must secure a surety in order to be released from custody.
His matter returns to court on Aug. 20.
– with files from Linda Richardson