Canal Winchester man gets five years in prison for 2021 bomb threats

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) -- A Canal Winchester man was sentenced to five years in prison nearly three years after he made multiple threatening calls toward central Ohio schools.

Yousif Mubarak, 27, was given the prison sentence Wednesday after he was found guilty of seven counts of making interstate threats. The guilty verdict stemmed from at least 87 calls he made in September 2021 to law enforcement agencies, a Franklin County judge, and local businesses and schools.

Mubarak called from Seattle and began making threatening calls towards a Franklin County Municipal Court judge, saying he would kill her and that she should watch her cars. Then, he began to call businesses and schools on Sept. 12, 2021, in Canal Winchester and Pickerington, which included Brew Dog, a Best Western, and a Home Depot.

Multiple law enforcement officials went to his last known Canal Winchester address that same day, where Mubarak taunted officers through his Ring doorbell camera. He called a Fairfield County emergency worker within 20 minutes of that interaction, threatening her. Mubarak then called the Franklin County Sheriff's Office more than 100 times in a 12-hour span.

The next morning, he called bomb threats into Canal Winchester Middle School and Pickerington High School North within 20 minutes of each other. At the time, Canal Winchester closed, and Pickerington North was evacuated.

Authorities arrested Mubarak on Sept. 22, 2021, in Portland, Oregon. He was indicted in Nov. 2021 and had his indictment superseded in June 2022.