Windom man faces harassment charges

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WINDOM — A 24-year-old Windom man is facing felony-level harassment charges after allegedly calling and texting an ex-girlfriend repeatedly— at one point more than 40 calls in a two-hour period.

Benjamin Jacob Pruitt is charged in Cottonwood County District Court with harassment-stalking with intent to injure, along with three other harassment counts.

The stalking charge states Pruitt directly or indirectly manifested a purpose to injure the person, property or rights of the victim.

The complaint states the victim, a 17-year-old girl, went the law enforcement center with her mother to report Pruitt would not stop calling them after the girl broke up with him.

Pruitt had allegedly told the girl over the phone that he was coming to find her and would not be going away.

After dating for eight or nine months, the girl said, she had broken up with him more than a week ago. She said she got more than 50 phone calls from Pruitt one night.

While the girl and her mother were filling out statements at the law enforcement center, she received a text message from Pruitt.

“All the blood that spills from me is on your guys’ hands,” the message stated.

Concerned, the officer decided to do a welfare check on Pruitt. He spoke to the man at his apartment, and told him to stop calling the girl and her mother, which Pruitt allegedly agreed to do. After the officer returned to the law enforcement center, he received a phone call from Pruitt asking why he couldn’t contact the girl when there was no paper telling him he could not call her. Pruitt allegedly argued with the officer.

In the girl’s written report, she stated she had continually told Pruitt they were done dating, but he insisted she was lying and that they were still dating. Pruitt called 40 times in two hours one afternoon, and had allegedly told the girl he would get her fired from her job and any other job she gets in her life. He allegedly said he would take away the things she cares about the most just to hurt her, and plans to come to her school and her house knowing he isn’t wanted at either place just to make her talk to him, the complaint states.

The victim’s mother also wrote a report, which stated Pruitt has been harassing both of them with constant calls and texts. The woman said Pruitt has shown up their house so he can wait for the girl to come home from lunch and has texted her messages pleading her to help him get her daughter back.

According to the woman, some of the text messages sent to her by Pruitt are threatening to both her and her daughter.

“You made your choice, you will suffer the consequences,” one message said.

“I will do everything in my power to ruin her life,” said another.

The messages also allegedly state none of this would be happening if the woman had just controlled her daughter.

“It is over when I say it is. I would strongly suggest moving,” one alleged text stated.

Other messages talk about scars, cuts and bleeding.

After reading the statements, the officer determined Pruitt should be arrested for harassment. He located Pruitt at a gas station parking lot, and during a pat-down search, found two knives in his pockets.

After Pruitt was in custody, the officer went back to speak with the women and made recordings of some of the voice mail messages Pruitt had left for them earlier that day.

The complaint states Pruitt told the girl, “You can make it right before I come finish what I started” and “I’m not going away, I will come find you if I have to.”

The victim’s mother had voice messages that stated, “I’m on my way over and if you are not there I will find her.”

When arrested, Pruitt’s phone was taken as evidence.

He has a previous conviction in Jackson County for disorderly conduct from July 2008. Pruitt was charged in Cottonwood County in May 2008 with terroristic threats, property damage and disorderly conduct, and later entered into a plea agreement to plead guilty to the disorderly conduct charge. The other two charges were dismissed and he was discharged from probation in September 2009.

A court appearance is scheduled for Monday.

Tags: news, windom, crime, harassment, stalking