Alaska Man Indicted for Sending Hundreds of Assassination Threats to Supreme Court Justices

A federal grand jury in Alaska indicted a 76-year-old man on Sept. 18 for making hundreds of threats to injure and assassinate six justices of the U.S. Supreme Court and their families.
They allegedly included threats to kill the justices in ways such as lynching and beheading. One threat said that he would assist in “‘providing the rope’ to ‘hang [the justice] … from an Oak tree,’” the indictment said.
He also encouraged others to take action against the justices in the threats, according to the indictment. He allegedly said that he would kill two justices and their family members by sending “fellow veterans” of the Vietnam War to “spray” their homes with bullets.
Another alleged threat was against a former president of the United States, though court records refer to him only as “Former President 1.”
Documents claim that the Supreme Court Police reviewed the messages and deemed them “concerning enough” to warrant an investigation. FBI agents in Anchorage then assisted in contacting the man to discuss the messages.
Anastasiou made his first court appearance on Sept. 18, and a federal judge will decide on Sept. 19 whether he is eligible for bond.
Federal prosecutors argued in a memo to the court after his arrest against giving him bond and detaining him until trial, claiming that he is a serious flight risk.
Prosecutors allege that Anastasiou “has a demonstrated history of disregard for the authority of federal courts and will be unlikely to obey court orders” and that there is “a serious risk that the defendant will obstruct or attempt to obstruct justice, or threaten, injure, or intimidate, or attempt to threaten, injure, or intimidate, a prospective witness or juror, because he exposes a persistent and obsessive desire to cause harm to his victims and encourage others to harm the victims as well.”
Anastasiou is charged with nine counts of making threats against a federal judge and 13 counts of making threats in interstate commerce.
If convicted, he faces up to 10 years in prison for each count of making threats against a federal judge and up to five years in prison for each count of making threats in interstate commerce.
Jane M. Imholte, the federal public defender representing Anastasiou, said her client had no comment at this time on the matter.