An Alaska man has been indicted for allegedly making hundreds of threats against six members of the Supreme Court, according to the Justice Department, including plans to assassinate the justices.
Prosecutors allege that Panos Anastasiou, 76, sent more than 450 messages beginning in March 2023 intended for six justices and two of their family members. Starting in January, the messages started to “convey threats of harm.” The indictment, which was filed Wednesday but announced Thursday, does not name the specific justices or their family members. There are six Republican-appointed justices on the nine-member bench.
Supreme Court officials reviewed the messages in the spring of 2023 and found them concerning enough to bring an investigation, according to a court filing.
A summary of the messages suggested that they contained “violent, racist, and homophobic rhetoric coupled with threats of assassination via torture, hanging, and firearms, and encouraged others to participate in the acts of violence,” the indictment said.
In one alleged message sent to “Supreme Court Justice 1,” the defendant’s words “contained a threat to murder” the unnamed justice by “lynching,” according to the indictment.
Another alleged message included in the indictment was sent just hours after the Supreme Court decided the landmark presidential immunity decision involving former President Donald Trump on July 1. In it, Anastasiou allegedly threatened to torture and execute six justices by “assassination” and sent a similar message that same evening.
Another message that allegedly followed two days after the immunity decision included a threat to behead the six justices, according to the DOJ.
Altogether, the defendant faces nine counts of threatening a federal judge and 13 counts of threats in interstate commerce. Anastasiou made his first court appearance on Wednesday and remains in custody. He has pleaded not guilty.
Attorney General Merrick Garland released a statement condemning what the DOJ described as a “heinous” attack against the high court.
“Our justice system depends on the ability of judges to make their decisions based on the law, and not on fear. Our democracy depends on the ability of public officials to do their jobs without fearing for their lives or the safety of their families,” Garland said.
Security of federal judges has become a heightened issue in recent years as the judiciary has experienced an increased number of threats. In 2022, a 26-year-old from California, Nicholas Roske, was arrested after he admitted he was attempting to assassinate Justice Brett Kavanaugh.
Roske was arrested outside Kavanaugh’s home in Maryland following the leaked draft opinion that signaled the high court planned to overturn Roe v. Wade. A criminal trial for Roske is slated to commence in June.
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Although the threatened family members are also unknown, the spouses of two Republican-appointed justices have been the subject of media reports that have criticized the conduct of Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito.
The Washington Examiner contacted a public defender for Anastasiou for comment.
