LARNED — Following a bench trial Wednesday morning, Pawnee County District Judge Bruce Gatterman found Jacob Ohnmacht, 27, of Larned, guilty of criminal threat involving the claim of spitting on a pizza, a severity level 9 person felony.

The charge stems from an incident on the evening of Feb. 9 in Larned. Testimony at trial reflected that Ohnmacht texted his former mother-in-law around 6 p.m. indicating that he had just spit in a Larned Police Officer’s pizza because Ohnmacht knew she did not like the officer in question.  

She testified she immediately forwarded the text to the Kansas Bureau of Investigation.

Officer Dusty Snodgrass of the Larned Police Department testified that through viewing store surveillance footage at Ohnmacht’s place of employment he verified the officer in question had in fact purchased a pizza made by Ohnmacht on the date and relevant time frame the text was sent. Ohnmacht’s employer testified at trial they fully cooperated with the investigation and immediately terminated the defendant upon hearing the allegation.

Under Kansas law it is a felony to threaten to adulterate or contaminate any food, raw agricultural commodity, beverage, drug, animal feed, plant or public water supply.

Judge Gatterman was not asked to determine if the defendant had in fact spit in the pizza. Rather, the State only asked the court to determine if Ohnmacht had made a statement he had adulterated or contaminated food.

Sentencing was scheduled for September. Depending on his criminal history, Ohnmacht could be sentenced to between five and 17 months with the Kansas Department of Corrections.

The defendant remains in the custody of the Ford County Jail on unrelated charges.