Ex-Westland Kroger employee arraigned on threats of terrorism against co-workers, customers

A Garden City man was arraigned Wednesday in connection with making threats of terrorism over the weekend at a Westland grocery store where he worked, said the Wayne County Prosecutor's Office.

Jonathan Lee Stieber, 37, was arraigned in 18^th District Court in Westland before Judge Sandra Cicirelli with a charge of a threat of terrorism, the Prosecutor's Office said in a release. Stieber, a Kroger employee at the time, is accused of making terrorist threats against his coworkers and customers at the store.

"This was a potentially another incident that may have cost a lot of people their lives. Very thankfully, this was thwarted by a fellow employee at a Kroger store in Westland," Prosecutor Kym Worthy said.

Prosecutors allege Stieber threatened to shoot employees and customers at the store on Middle Belt Road at about 9 p.m. Sunday.

A police investigation led to Stieber's arrest Monday, the Prosecutor's Office said.

"The coworker reported his concerns immediately so law enforcement could start investigating," Worthy said. "Let me take this opportunity to say that we all should be ever vigilant and report any activity that may be criminal. Literally, lives can be saved."

Cicirelli set Stieber's bond at a $25,000 personal bond and ordered him to wear a GPS tether.

Stieber's probable cause conference is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. April 25; his preliminary examination is set for 8:30 a.m. May 5 before Judge Mark McConnell, prosecutors said.