A Virginia man who threatened on Twitter earlier this month to shoot a senator will remain in police custody until his trial commences.
A judge ruled Monday that Kyler Schmitz, a driver for the ride-sharing app Uber, had made a “direct threat” when he tweeted at Sen. Roy Blunt, R-Mo., and another unnamed senator earlier this month, according to a report published late Monday.
The graphic messages prompted an investigation by U.S. Capitol Police, who also discovered Schmitz’s cryptic message, “I can’t wait to shoot you in the face one by one.”
Hours after the tweets were posted, an automated license plate reader on Capitol Hill notified Capitol Police that Schmitz’s car had been detected in the vicinity of Blunt’s office.
It’s unclear when Schmitz was taken in to custody. During the hearing, the suspect said his threats were meant to be a joke because he does not own a gun, but the judge disagreed with his classification of the acts.
“I don’t know how to read these tweets in any way but as threatening,” the judge told Schmitz during the hearing Monday.
A trial date has not been set yet.
