The U.S. Department of Justice recently announced that a man from Ohio has been formally indicted by a federal grand jury for allegedly threatening to assassinate Vice President JD Vance. The case also revealed that the defendant is suspected of possessing and disseminating child sexual abuse images, further escalating the nature of the case.
According to a press release issued by the Department of Justice on February 6, Shannon Mathre, a 33-year-old resident of Toledo, Ohio, is accused of making death threats against a “presidential successor.”
Prosecutors allege that Mathre had threatened to track the vice president’s schedule and carry out an assassination using an M14 automatic rifle. He was arrested by U.S. Secret Service agents on February 6. If convicted of the related charges, he could face up to 5 years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000.
The Department of Justice further disclosed that during the investigation into the threat case, federal law enforcement officers discovered that Mathre was also suspected of receiving and distributing child sexual abuse images between December 31 of last year and January 21 of this year. If convicted of these charges, he could face up to 20 years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000.
U.S. Attorney General Pamela Bondi stated that violence threats against the Vice President are “disgusting,” and the Department of Justice will punish offenders according to the law. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche noted that the revelation of the second serious crime during the enforcement process shows the defendant’s behavior as “extremely despicable.” Federal Prosecutor David M. Toepfer of Northern Ohio also emphasized that any violence threats against high-ranking public officials will not be tolerated.
Court records show that Mathre appeared in court for the first time on February 6, is currently detained pending trial, and a detention hearing is scheduled for February 11.
Shortly before this indictment, there was also a security incident involving Vance’s residence in Kentucky. According to a previous Associated Press report, a 26-year-old man, William Defoor, allegedly broke into Vance’s residence, damaging a Secret Service vehicle, fortunately, Vance and his family were not at home at the time.
Currently, Vance is leading the U.S. delegation to participate in activities related to the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy. In response to the break-in incident at his residence, he expressed gratitude for the public concern but also questioned the news value of some media outlets extensively reporting the damage to his residence.