Two men charged for making threats

A pair of allegedly unruly customers were charged with terrorizing Carrington businesses in March.

Most recently, a man from Tuttle, N.D. was charged with Class C felony terrorizing after threatening to kill a Runnings employee on Tuesday, March 26.

Court documents say the heated exchange occurred over the phone when an employee from the Runnings in Carrington called Walter Albert Leno to inform him that a box of ammunition he’d special ordered was at the store.

Upon picking up the phone, court documents say Leno answered immediately with a profanity-laced attack and a threat to shoot the employee in the head.

The employee then stated who they were and that they’re with Runnings, and informed him of the ammunition. But court documents say the employee was again berated and had their life threatened.

Carrington police were called, who later coordinated with the Kidder County Sheriff’s Office to have Leno arrested and booked into the Stutsman County Correctional Center for terrorizing.

Leno’s next court appearance will be on May 7, for a scheduled preliminary hearing.

If found guilty, a Class C felony carries a maximum sentence of 5 year’s imprisonment, a fine of $5,000, or both.

Meanwhile, another court appearance will take place on Tuesday, April 9 for a second individual charged with terrorizing last month.

Hunter Waylon Shortbear of Carrington was charged with terrorizing and aggravated assault, both Class C felonies, as well as refusal to halt, a Class B misdemeanor, for an incident that occurred at the Chieftain hotel in Carrington on March 1.

According to court documents, police were called in the early morning hours of that day after Shortbear had allegedly brandished a hunting-style knife and made threats towards staff and patrons of the Chieftain hotel.

Carrington Police Officer Christopher Ormiston responded.

According to an affidavit written by Ormiston, one individual reported that Shortbear had held a knife to their throat, while another person, identified as “B.J.” in court documents, said they were attacked.

“He indicated that Hunter Shortbear had attacked him with a knife that morning,” wrote Ormiston. “Hunter Shortbear had held the knife above Hunter’s shoulder and approached B.J. swinging the knife in a downward motion. B.J. had to take a defensive stance to prevent injury. B.J. indicated that the knife point had touched B.J.’s shoulder leaving a mark.”

When police pursued Shortbear, he allegedly refused to halt when ordered to do so, before ultimately complying and getting placed under arrest.

Shortbear was later released after posting $750 bail. His initial appearance is scheduled for April 9.

Both Leno and Shortbear are considered innocent unless proven guilty.