Man Arrested for Threatening to Kill, Rape House Majority Leader and Family
The FBI has arrested a Lenoir City, Tenn., man who left a profanity-laden rant that included an anti-Semitic slur and threatened to kill and rape his wife and daughter on a voicemail at the office of House Majority Leader Eric Cantor.
Glendon Llewellyn Swift, 62, is charged with threatening to assault or murder a family member of a public U.S. official. Swift was brought before U.S. Magistrate Judge C. Clifford Shirley in Knoxville on Thursday and a detention hearing is scheduled for next Wednesday in Knoxville.
The two after hours messages left at Cantor’s Richmond, Va., offices on the evening of Oct. 27 said he would “destroy” the congressman, kill his wife and rape his daughter.
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After listening to the messages the next morning, a staff member alerted the U.S. Capitol Police, who then sought assistance from the FBI in order to locate the caller.
Authorities traced the number to Swift’s cell phone that led authorities to the suspect. After his arrest Wednesday, Swift told authorities that he “got drunk the other night and started cussing people out,” according to the affidavit.
“Threatening to harm the family of a public official is a very serious charge, and we are grateful to the FBI and their law enforcement partners for their quick action in this case,” said Neil H. MacBride, U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia.
Neither Cantor nor anyone from his office would comment on the incident. “This is a law enforcement matter. We have no comment,” Laena Fallon, a spokesperson for Cantor, told ABC News.
“When I was working at the bureau (FBI) we received several threats reports each day where someone threatened to kill or harm someone,” said a retired FBI agent who asked not to be identified.
“Most of them were directed at, however, the president at the time, but regardless of who they threaten, we took every one very seriously. These folks need to find a better outlet to release their anger so they could do some serious time in jail.”
Swift has been charged with threatening to assault or murder a member of the immediate family of a United States official. If convicted, he could face a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison.
The most recent incident is not the first time Cantor has been received a serious threat. In April, a Philadelphia man was sentenced to two years in prison after pleading guilty to posting a video on YouTube that called Cantor “a liar” and “Lucifer” and threatened to shoot him.
The FBI and Capitol Hill police routinely deal with a variety of threats made against public officials. Two weeks ago, a threatening message was posted on the Internet that specifically referenced Rep. Bobby Schilling (R-Ill.), along with a variety of unnamed officials.
“I will pay $75,000 for ASSASSINATING Illinois Congresswoman (sic) Bobby Schilling and any US Congressman, US Senator and FBI, CIA and NSA DIRECTORS and their FAMILY MEMBERS regardless of their age,” the threat read.
No one has been arrested for posting the threat on Schilling and the others and the FBI is still investigating.
