For years, a former law partner at K&L Gates in Manhattan sent thousands of threats and harassing messages, often including racist and antisemitic attacks, to lawyers at the firm. Willie Dennis also physically threatened former coworkers’ families.

Dennis has been sentenced to two years in prison on three counts of cyber-stalking. Prosecutors had sought four-and-a-half years, but Dennis’ lawyer noted in a court filing that his client expressed remorse for his actions.

Beginning in 2018, Dennis began making the threats, and they increased by 2019 after he was fired. One victim moved out of state to escape him, and another slept with a loaded gun near his bed. Dennis told one victim to “sleep with one eye open” and told others they would become “biblical symbols.”

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams described the intimidation as “relentless” and said, “the sentence imposed today ensures that Dennis’s victims will no longer needlessly endure his attacks.”