A 76-year-old Alaska man was arrested in Anchorage on Wednesday for allegedly threatening to harm and kill six U.S. Supreme Court Justices and some of their family members, the Department of Justice announced.
Panos Anastasiou faces nine counts of making threats against a federal judge and 13 counts of making threats in interstate commerce, according to court documents. The charges stem from over 465 messages Anastasiou allegedly sent to the Supreme Court through a public website between March 10 and July 16, 2023.
Attorney General Merrick B. Garland stated, “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.”
Prosecutors claim Anastasiou’s messages escalated to explicit threats beginning January 4, containing violent, racist, and homophobic language coupled with threats of assassination by various means.
Anastasiou made his initial court appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Kyle F. Reardon of the U.S. District Court for the District of Alaska. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison for each count of threatening a federal judge and five years for each count of making interstate threats.
The Supreme Court of the United States Police, Protective Intelligence Unit is investigating the case, with support from the U.S. Marshals Service and FBI Anchorage Field Office.
Attorney General Garland emphasized the importance of judicial independence, stating, “Our justice system depends on the ability of judges to make their decisions based on the law, and not on fear.”
The case underscores ongoing concerns about threats to public officials and the security challenges faced by the nation’s highest court.
Source: DOJ
