Reporter pleads guilty over prank phone call using Noem’s cell number

A former local news reporter pleaded guilty Tuesday to making a prank phone call using South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem’s (R) personal cellphone number. 

Austin Goss pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor disorderly conduct charge stemming from a pre-recorded prank phone call he made to the former chairman of the South Dakota Republican Party, Dan Lederman, in January, according to the Associated Press. 

Goss, who has been fired from his job as a Capitol Bureau reporter for South Dakota ABC affiliate KOTA and Dakota News Now, was initially charged with a misdemeanor count of making threatening, harassing or misleading contacts. 

That charge carries a maximum penalty of a one-year prison sentence and a fine of $2,000, the AP reported. However, Goss’s lawyer said in a statement that his plea deal “suspended imposition of sentence so there will be no conviction on his record.”

In the prerecorded phone call, a mafia member accuses the recipient of stealing boxes of vaccines, saying, “You telling me, you didn’t tell Vito, that you were going to try to move the three boxes of that AstraZeneca outside this family?” The call ended with the line: “You’ve just been pranked by PrankDial.com.”

Lederman also told authorities that Goss would send “snide or rude remarks” via text messages, adding that the audio recording “caused him concern for his safety,” according to court documents.

In a statement at the time, Noem confirmed that her cellphone number has been hacked, urging Attorney General Merrick Garland and Congress to investigate the matter. 

“Callous mishandling of personal information has real world consequences,” Noem said. “If you get such a phone call from my number, know that I had no involvement.”

Goss’s attorney said the phone call was a “practical joke” between his client and a friend, per the AP. 

“I believe it is unfortunate he was charged in the first place, but appreciate the willingness of the State’s Attorney to reduce the charge,” he said.

Noem’s office declined to comment on the matter. 

This story was updated at 5:05 p.m.