Federal authorities arrested an Alaska man on Wednesday for allegedly threatening to torture and assassinate six Supreme Courtroom justices and a number of relations in messages despatched via the courtroom’s web site.
Prosecutors say Panos Anastasiou, 76, levied the threats over the course of about six months, and courtroom paperwork reveal that some seem to answer the Supreme Courtroom’s landmark determination carving out broad prison immunity for former President Trump.
Though the targets aren’t recognized by title, they seem to incorporate Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas, two of the courtroom’s main conservatives. Trump himself additionally seems to be threatened in a minimum of two purported messages.
In a single alleged message despatched lower than two hours after the July 1 determination, Anastasiou threatened to torture and execute six unnamed justices by “assassination,” in line with the indictment. He allegedly despatched an analogous message that night.
Two days later, he made a menace to behead the six justices, prosecutors allege, which was purportedly adopted the subsequent day with a menace of drowning, capturing, strangling and “lynching” the six jurists.
Prosecutors say Anastasiou started sending messages via the Supreme Courtroom’s web site as early as March 2023 and began together with threats this previous January. Greater than 465 messages have been despatched in complete, in line with the indictment, and a few allegedly focused justices’ relations.
Alito seems to have acquired a number of violent threats in Could as he got here beneath public controversy for a flag related to the “Stop the Steal” motion that flew at his residence. One of many alleged messages seems to additionally levy racist threats towards Thomas and his spouse, Ginni Thomas, a conservative activist.
Anastasiou faces 9 counts of threatening a federal choose and 13 counts of threats in interstate commerce. He pleaded not responsible.
“We allege that the defendant made repeated, heinous threats to murder and torture Supreme Court Justices and their families to retaliate against them for decisions he disagreed with,” Lawyer Common Merrick Garland stated in an announcement.
“Our justice system depends on the ability of judges to make their decisions based on the law, and not on fear. Our democracy depends on the ability of public officials to do their jobs without fearing for their lives or the safety of their families,” he added.
Anastasiou made his first courtroom look on Wednesday and stays in custody a minimum of till a detention listening to scheduled for later Thursday.
His public defender declined to remark.
The grand jury returned the indictment simply days after authorities started investigating a person for apparently making an attempt to assassinate Trump at one in every of his Florida golf programs Sunday.
And it comes amid elevated issues in regards to the safety of Supreme Courtroom justices.
A person accused of making an attempt to homicide Justice Brett Kavanaugh two years in the past by exhibiting up outdoors his residence with a firearm is about to go to trial subsequent June.
In April, one other defendant was sentenced to 14 months imprisonment for threatening to kill Chief Justice John Roberts. And one other man faces costs after allegedly making an attempt to carjack Justice Sonia Sotomayor’s safety element stationed outdoors her residence, although there isn’t a proof suggesting the defendant realized who he was focusing on.
