John Best will serve 20 years, on top of the 30 years he was already sentenced to, for threatening to kill a witness in his case
Baltimore, Md. (July 13, 2026) - Today, the Baltimore City State’s Attorney’s Office announced that Defendant John Best was sentenced to 20 years of incarceration after being found guilty of Witness Intimidation. This sentence is to be served consecutive to the Defendant's 30-year sentence for First-Degree Arson. Assistant State’s Attorneys Daniel Salem and Gina Gharbawi of the Major Investigations Unit prosecuted this case.
“The cooperation and courage of witnesses and victims to testify in a trial is the most important element to securing a conviction. Anyone who threatens to harm the brave men and women who agree to take the stand and speak their truth will face swift and severe consequences from our office,” said State’s Attorney Ivan J. Bates. “Our city’s law enforcement and victim support networks have worked tirelessly over the decades to undo the stop snitching culture in Baltimore. Therefore, there can be no leniency in our prosecution of witness intimidation and related offenses. In short, this Defendant's ‘Twitter fingers’ turned his 30-year sentence into a 50-year sentence by sending some text messages.”
On October 31, 2024, Baltimore Police responded to a residence in the 2800 block of Forest Glen Road regarding a domestic dispute. Upon arrival, a woman advised officers that the Defendant, John Best, had acted aggressively towards her earlier that day and made threats to kill her. The woman stated that the Defendant lived with her at the location. While officers were speaking with the woman, the Defendant arrived on the scene. Officers asked the Defendant to stay back while they spoke with the woman, but he refused. The Defendant then ran inside the home and barricaded himself. He then grabbed a knife and a lighter and began breaking the windows out of the home. The Defendant yelled at the police that they would have to kill him and that he would provoke them to do so by rushing them with the knife.
The Defendant then stated that he would burn the residence down. Before police could safely intervene, officers observed smoke and fire growing from the first floor of the home. As the fire swelled, the Defendant attempted to escape through the second-floor window. Officers were waiting outside for the Defendant, who initially stated that he would comply with their instructions. However, once the Defendant made it to the ground, he began to resist officers as they attempted to place him under arrest.
There was approximately $20,000 in structural damage and $10,000 in personal property damage. The Defendant was charged with First-Degree Arson and related offenses. During trial preparations, the Defendant sent a tablet message to the victim in the arson case that stated if she testified in court, he would have her and her family “wiped off the face of this earth” and that “life is a chess game and I can checkmate your life while I’m still living” because he “had say so in BGF.”
The Defendant was convicted of First-Degree Arson in February of 2026 and sentenced to 30 years of incarceration. He will now serve 20 additional years for being convicted of Witness Intimidation.