Brian Jeffrey Abney, 53, of House Springs has been charged with a felony for allegedly threatening to murder an Instacart employee over a dispute about a severance payment owed to his wife, who had worked for the shopping and delivery company at the Schnucks grocery store, 3900 Vogel Road, in Arnold, court records show.
Abney was charged on May 19 with first-degree making a terrorist threat, a class D felony punishable by up to seven years in prison. As of May 25, he was being held without bond at the Jefferson County Jail in Hillsboro.
Between May 12 and May 17, Abney reportedly called Instacart employees and allegedly threatened more than 10 people. He allegedly threatened to murder the company’s employees 14 times during 10 phone calls he made to the out-of-state call center, the probable-cause statement in the case said.
Abney allegedly made the threats because he said his wife was owed $750 in severance from Instacart, the report said.
Because of his reported threats, including alleged threats to use a firearm, Instacart employees were sent home on May 17 from the Arnold Schnucks store, according to the report.
Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office deputies arrested Abney at about 7:35 p.m. May 19 at his home in House Springs, spokesman Grant Bissell said.