By Sarah Richardson
A Beckley man is facing criminal charges after allegedly making multiple harassing and threatening phone calls to Lewisburg City Hall, including threats of violence against government employees and former Mayor John Manchester, who passed away earlier this year.
According to a criminal complaint filed in Greenbrier County Magistrate Court, the Lewisburg Police Department investigated a series of phone messages left in the City of Lewisburg’s voicemail system. The messages, identified as coming from Michael Joseph Neeley, age 54, escalated in hostility and included threats of death. A total of seven voicemails were recorded between the evening of Mar. 4 and Mar. 5 and were received by administrative staff at City Hall.
Neeley’s messages specifically targeted former Mayor Manchester, who served as Mayor for 16 years before retiring in 2019, and referenced taking matters into his own hands. In one message Neeley allegedly stated, “You, Miss Secretary, you’re dead first because you’re the one that will call the cops,” adding that if law enforcement would not do their job, and he would “do it for them, including the death penalty.”
Investigators also noted that Neeley has a history of making threats. He was previously charged in 2020 for making bomb threats against Lewisburg City Hall, leading to the evacuation and closure of government offices. The criminal complaint states that his actions are “due to his belief that former Mayor Manchester was using a piano at City Hall to produce counterfeit money.”
Sgt. Blevins of the West Virginia State Police (WVSP) Lewisburg Detachment also received a call from Neeley on the morning of Mar. 6. Neeley stated he wanted to report a counterfeit money operation in Lewisburg. Later that morning, Neeley reportedly called back and stated he planned to “take matters into his own hands” but “doesn’t want to commit murder.”
Neeley is being held at Southern Regional Jail in Beckley on a $25,000 bond.
