New Hampshire Man Sentenced to Prison for Conspiring to Harass and Intimidate Two Journalists

BOSTON – A New Hampshire man was sentenced on Aug. 27, 2024 for his role in a conspiracy to stalk journalists employed by New Hampshire Public Radio (NHPR). The harassment and intimidation of the victims included the vandalism – on five separate occasions – of the victims’ homes and the home of one of the victims’ parents with bricks, large rocks and red spray paint.

Tucker Cockerline, 33, of Salem, N.H., was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani to 27 months in prison and three years of supervised release. Cockerline pleaded guilty in federal court in Boston in December 2023 to one count of conspiracy to commit stalking through interstate travel and using a facility of interstate commerce. Cockerline was initially arrested and charged by criminal complaint in June 2023. He was later indicted along with co-defendants Eric Labarge, Michael Waselchuck, and Saniatan. Labarge and Waselchuck have both pleaded guilty and are awaiting sentencing. Saniatan is expected to plead guilty in federal court in Boston on Sept. 5, 2024.

In March of 2022, after a year-long investigation, an NHPR journalist (Victim 1) published an article detailing allegations of sexual and other misconduct by a former New Hampshire businessperson (Subject 1). Another NHPR journalist (Victim 2) also contributed to the article, which appeared on NHPR’s website during and after March 2022. In response to this reporting, Labarge – who is a close personal associate of Subject 1 – Cockerline, Waselchuck, and allegedly Saniatan, agreed to harass and intimidate Victims 1 and 2 and their immediate family members by vandalizing their homes in the middle of the night with bricks, rocks and red spray paint. 

Specifically, Labarge solicited Cockerline to vandalize Victim 1’s former residence in Hanover, N.H., using a brick and red spray paint. On the evening of April 24, 2022, Cockerline spraypainted the word “C*NT” in large red letters on the front door of the home and threw a brick through an exterior window. Saniatan allegedly agreed with Labarge to vandalize Victim 2’s home in Concord, N.H., and Victim 1’s parents’ home in Hampstead, N.H., using large rocks and red spray paint. On the evening of April 24, 2022, Saniatan allegedly spraypainted the word “C*NT” in large red letters on the front door and threw a large rock at the exterior of Victim 2’s home; and he allegedly threw a softball-sized rock through a front exterior window and spraypainted the word “C*NT” in large red letters on the front of Victim 1’s parents’ home.

Labarge also solicited Cockerline to vandalize Victim 1’s parents’ home in Hampstead, N.H., and Victim 1’s home in Melrose, Mass., using bricks and red spray paint. Cockerline, in turn, recruited Waselchuck to vandalize Victim 1’s residence, providing him with a brick and a can of red spray paint. On the evening of May 20, 2022, Cockerline spraypainted the word “C*NT” in large red letters on the front of Victim 1’s parents’ home, and left a brick on the ground near the front door.  Several hours later, Waselchuck threw a brick through an exterior window of Victim 1’s home and painted the phrase “JUST THE BEGINNING” in large red letters on the front of the house.

Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy and Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division made the announcement today.  Valuable assistance was provided by the Concord, Hampstead and Hanover, N.H. Police Departments, the Melrose, Mass. Police Department and the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of New Hampshire. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jason A. Casey and Torey B. Cummings of the Criminal Division are prosecuting the case.

The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The remaining defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.