A man known for harassing law enforcement and other members of the community will serve time in prison in a felony case stemming from a recent stalking incident.
Herb Newton, who goes by the alias of Herb Freeman on social media, was sentenced to 10 months in prison by Judge Mark Fleegle in common pleas court in Muskingum County on Monday.
Newton was charged with a fifth-degree felony count of illegal use of SNAP benefits less than $1,000. He plead guilty to that charge in December.
Authorities said a warrant showed on several occasions between July and August, a Facebook account from Onika Schell messaged Newton asking for illegal narcotics in exchange for access to her food stamps. The messages and EBT transactions data showed that Newton provided the drugs and Schell paid using her benefits card.
In August, Newton was arrested after he was seen outside a Zanesville Police Officer’s home with a bull horn and several recording devices shouting obscenities.
The responding officer recorded a portion of Newton’s act on his cruiser camera.
He was arrested for the misdemeanor crime of menacing by stalking, a crime for which he was later convicted in Zanesville Municipal Court by the Zanesville Law Director’s office.
