Pennsylvania man convicted of threatening to behead Tampa General CEO

A Pennsylvania man has been convicted by a federal jury for threatening to behead Tampa General Hospital CEO John Couris, the U.S. Attorney office in Tampa announced Friday. 

U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida Gregory Kehoe's office says Lawrence Brunn, 63, of Oakmont, Pennsylvania, was found guilty of federal cyber harassment charges. 

Brunn faces up to five years in federal prison. His sentencing date has not yet been set. 

The Justice Department doesn’t name Couris in a statement announcing Brunn’s conviction, only referring to the alleged victim as J.C. The statement does, however, identify him as the chief executive officer of Tampa General, a role Couris has held since 2017.

According to evidence presented at trial, Brunn has been harassing Couris online since at least 2022. The frequency and intensity of his harassment increased over the last two years, the Justice Department says, with Brunn’s threats calling for Couris’ execution and often referencing his beheading with a guillotine. 

In one post from April 9, 2025, Brunn stated Couris “should have his head chopped off” and that Couris “should be scared … of we the people.”

In addition to online postings, Brunn also sent mail to Couris’ home, his neighbors’ homes and to members of the Board of Trustees for Tampa General Hospital, authorities alleged.  

According to the criminal complaint filed by the FBI and Palm Beach County civil court records, Brunn used to work at Jupiter Medical Center on Florida’s east coast, where Couris was the president and CEO before he joined Tampa General. Brunn was hired as a budget manager and then worked as an interim controller before he was fired Oct. 22, 2014 after falsely accusing JMC’s CFO of embezzling $6 million in funds from the center, court records show. 

After the firing Brunn began harassing the center, which led to JMC filing a defamation lawsuit against him in Palm Beach County in 2014. 

According to the complaint, that lawsuit was closed in 2020 with a finding in the medical center’s favor. Once that happened, officials say Brunn’s focus turned to Couris. 

The complaint against Brunn includes several more similar threats of violence, many made on Brunn’s website, icanfundtheusa.com. 

According to court papers, Couris hired private security to monitor his home and drive him to and from work. 

Assistant U.S. Attorney Candace Garcia Ric prosecuted the case, which the FBI investigated.  .