New Hampshire man charged with threatening Vivek Ramaswamy during campaign stop
Vivek Ramaswamy speaks at the Roundabout Diner for a breakfast town hall in Portsmouth
By Hannah Rabinowitz and Alison Main, CNN
(CNN) — Federal prosecutors announced charges Monday accusing a New Hampshire man of threatening to “blow” a presidential candidate’s “brains out” during a campaign stop in the state.
Though the presidential candidate is not named in charging documents, a spokesperson for Vivek Ramaswamy confirmed that his campaign was the target of the threats.
Tyler Anderson, 30, is charged with transmitting an interstate threat. He has not yet entered a formal plea and will make an initial appearance in federal court Monday afternoon.
The charges against Anderson come as public officials report facing a deluge of violent messages. A recent CNN report found a staggering number of threats and harassment levied at members of Congress and other public servants in the lead up to what is likely to be among the most politically toxic presidential elections in modern history.
According to court documents, Anderson received a text message from a presidential campaign about an event in Portsmouth, New Hampshire.
Anderson allegedly responded to the message, saying: “Great, another opportunity for me to blow his brains out!” and “I’m going to kill everyone who attends and then f**k their corpses.”
Tricia McLaughlin, a spokesperson for Ramaswamy’s campaign, told CNN in a statement that “we are grateful to law enforcement for their swiftness and professionalism in handling this matter and pray for the safety of all Americans.”
In an interview with law enforcement after his arrest, Anderson allegedly said that he sent similarly threatening text messages to multiple other campaigns. An FBI agent found such messages on Anderson’s phone, court documents say, including one message from just two days earlier where Anderson responded to a campaign event invitation, “Thanks, I’ll see you there. Hope you have the stamina for a mass shooting!”
The second candidate is also not named in court documents.
This story has been updated with additional details.
The-CNN-Wire
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