Tyler Anderson: Man slapped with federal charges for threatening to ‘blow’ Vivek Ramaswamy’s ‘brains out’
PORTSMOUTH, NEW HAMPSHIRE: A New Hampshire man is facing federal charges for allegedly sending violent threats to the presidential campaign of Vivek Ramaswamy.
Tyler Anderson, 30, is accused of sending text messages such as “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.”
Vivek Ramaswamy is grateful for action against Tyler Anderson
Court documents, as reported by NBC Boston, stated the text messages targeted a candidate who was "scheduled to hold a campaign event in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, on December 11, 2023" at 8.30 am.
They said the event included a "buffet-style breakfast." Republican Vivek Ramaswamy was the only listed candidate for the event.
Confirming the same, Tricia McLaughlin, the spokesperson for Ramaswamy campaign on Monday, December 11, in an email to the news outlet said, "Unfortunately it is true," CNN reported.
The statement added, "We are grateful to law enforcement for their swiftness and professionalism in handling this matter and pray for the safety of all Americans." However, he is also suspected of sending similar threats to other candidates.
How was Tyler Anderson caught?
The messages were sent from a phone number that was traced to Anderson who had received a text message from the campaign notifying him of a political event in Portsmouth.
This morning, Tyler Anderson was arrested for threatening to kill Vivek Ramaswamy. Anderson allegedly responded to a text inviting him to an campaign event that he was going to “kill everyone who attends”
— Seamus Hughes (@SeamusHughes) December 11, 2023
Here’s a link to our latest threat researchhttps://t.co/L3f5Dycspf https://t.co/ccy697rACt pic.twitter.com/0gMilsuqYv
The authorities obtained a search warrant for Anderson’s home in Dover and seized his phone and firearms. Investigators used Verizon Wireless records to determine that the two messages were sent from Anderson's phone at 10.06 am on Friday, December 8, about six minutes after he received a text message from the candidate's campaign, 10 Boston reported.
Following the Sunday, December 10, search warrant, investigators seized a Samsung Galaxy S10E phone from his residence which was allegedly used to send the messages.
Tyler Anderson had sent threatening messages to other candidates too
A preliminary search of the phone revealed the messages found in deleted folder whch were reported by Ramaswamy’s campaign as well as other messages sent to different candidates.
One wrote, "blow that b*******'s head off!" and another "Thanks, I'll see you there. Hope you have the stamina for a mass shooting!"
Anderson reportedly admitted to sending the messages to "multiple other campaigns" in an interview with the FBI and said he had no intention of carrying out the threats.
What are the consequences for Tyler Anderson?
Anderson is charged with transmitting an interstate commerce a threat to injure the person of another. The charge carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of $250,000, according to US Attorney's Office.
He is scheduled to appear in federal court in Concord at 2.30 pm on Monday, December 18, and has not yet entered a plea. He is being held in custody pending a detention hearing.
