A man is facing a federal charge after allegedly threatening to kill Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard and her husband, the Justice Department announced Monday.
Aliakbar Mohammad Amin, 24, of Lilburn, Georgia, allegedly sent threatening text messages about Gabbard and her husband, Abraham Williams, between March 29 and April 1, the Justice Department said in a news release. He was charged with transmitting interstate threats.
"Prepare to die, you, Tulsi, and everyone you hold dear," one of the texts read, according to the release. "America will burn."
Another message said Gabbard was "living on borrowed time" and warned that her home "is a legitimate target and will be hit at a time and place of our choosing," federal prosecutors said.
In a text sent to Williams, according to a complaint filed by federal prosecutors, Amin said: "Tell your wife to always be on her best behavior and not to disobey Mr. Vladimir Putin’s orders. We are friendly bears [Russian Flag + Bear emoji]. But we can also be angry bears [Russian flag + bear emoji]."
Gabbard and a lawyer for Amin did not immediately return requests for comment.
On Friday, when Amin was arrested, Gabbard thanked the FBI on X.
"Thank you @FBI, @USMarshalsHQ, and local law enforcement for your service and dedication in apprehending this radicalized, dangerous criminal who repeatedly threatened the lives of me, my family, and @realDonaldTrump," she wrote. "Thank you for your tireless work every day keeping the American people safe."
Federal authorities said they found additional threatening messages associated with Amin's social media accounts, including an image depicting a gun pointed at a photograph of Gabbard and a similar photo directed at Gabbard and her husband. Authorities also recovered a firearm from Amin's home, they said.
"Let this arrest serve as a clear warning: if you engage in this kind of criminal behavior, you will be caught and you will go to prison," Paul Brown, the special agent in charge of the FBI in Atlanta, said in the news release.
The announcement came a day after authorities arrested a man who allegedly broke into Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro's home while the family was asleep and started multiple fires with Molotov cocktails. The incident drew bipartisan condemnation.
"I don’t give a damn if it’s coming from one particular side or the other, directed at one particular party or another, or one particular person or another, it is not OK and it has to stop," Shapiro said Sunday.
