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Man charged with sending death threats to Rep. Bennie Thompson and Biden

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Man charged with sending death threats to Rep. Bennie Thompson and Biden

A Pennsylvania man is facing federal charges for allegedly sending a death threat to U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson of Mississippi, the chair of the House Jan. 6 Committee that is investigating efforts to overthrow the results of the November 2020 presidential election.

Thompson, who represents Mississippi’s 2nd congressional district, reported just before the last round of public hearings by the Jan. 6 Committee that his Washington, D.C., office had received a suspicious item in the mail.

Robert Maverick Vargo, who is 25 years old, was also charged with threatening President Joe Biden, according to Axios and other national media outlets. Vargo faces charges of threatening the President of the United States, interstate communications with a threat and influencing a federal official by threat.

The letter to Thompson contained a white power, but it was determined not to be dangerous.

The letter, according to Axios, referenced Thompson’s leadership of the Jan. 6 Committee that recently subpoenaed former President Donald Trump over efforts to throw out millions of votes and overturn the results of the election. The Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol was part of that effort.

The letter to Thompson read, in part, according to Axios: “Im going to kill you! I will make you feel the rest of our pain & suffering. There is nowhere or nobody who can keep you from me. I am going to kill you & those you love. I promise you that I will keep my promise until the day of my death. … You & Joe Biden soon will face death for the wrongs you’ve done to US.”

Thompson has been vocal in his belief that the committee he chairs is important to preserving the right to vote for all American citizens.

“I want, as an African American, to be able to say to the world that I helped stabilize our government when insurrectionists tried to take over,” Thompson told CNN in the summer before the hearings began.

READ MORE: ‘An attempted coup’: Rep. Bennie Thompson tells the world what happened on Jan. 6, 2021

Thompson — the dean of the Mississippi congressional delegation and indeed someone who has worked to avoid the limelight — has built his long political career on protecting democracy.

As a young adult in the 1960s, he worked to register African Americans to vote and to ensure votes were counted. Now leading the Jan. 6 Commission, he is effectively doing similar work: ensuring that legally cast votes are counted and that the nation’s representative democracy is protected from any future efforts to overturn the results of an election.

Thompson was selected to chair the special Jan. 6 Committee because of his leadership of the House’s Homeland Security Committee.

READ MORE: Rep. Bennie Thompson’s Mississippi colleagues have no comment on his Jan. 6 hearings

This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.

Mississippi News

Attorneys file motion to delay Jackson bribery trial

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www.wjtv.com – Kaitlin Howell – 2024-11-21 16:41:00

SUMMARY: In connection with the Jackson bribery scandal, attorneys for federal officials and local leaders filed a motion to postpone the trial to allow time for extensive evidence review, including hours of recordings and thousands of pages of documents. Key figures charged include Hinds County DA Jody Owens, Jackson Mayor Chokwe A. Lumumba, and Councilman Aaron Banks, each facing multiple counts of conspiracy related to bribery and fraud. The scandal involves alleged bribes amounting to over $80,000 related to a downtown development project, facilitated by individuals posing as real estate developers working with the FBI.

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Mississippi News

Family of Dexter Wade rallies outside JPD nearly two years after his death

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www.wjtv.com – Tia McKenzie – 2024-11-20 14:20:00

SUMMARY: Nearly two years after Dexter Wade’s death, his family continues seeking justice. On November 20, Dexter Wade Day was observed in Jackson, declared by Councilman Kenneth Stokes. Wade, hit by a Jackson police cruiser in March 2023, was later found in a pauper’s grave in Hinds County, and his mother, Bettersten Wade, was unaware of his death until August 2023. She believes his death was covered up. No arrests have been made, and authorities consider it an accident. Jackson Police Chief Joseph Wade expressed condolences and shared updates on new policies to prevent similar tragedies.

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Mississippi News

Man shot while helping with stalled vehicle in Jackson

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www.wjtv.com – Kaitlin Howell – 2024-11-20 19:08:00

SUMMARY: A man was shot in Jackson, Mississippi, while attempting to assist a person with a stalled vehicle on State Street at Beasley Road around 4:00 p.m. on November 20. Detective Tommie Brown reported that the victim was working on the vehicle when the suspect approached, questioned him, and then opened fire. The assailant fled the scene in a vehicle. Fortunately, the victim sustained non-life-threatening injuries and was taken to a local hospital. The Jackson Police Department is seeking information about the incident and encourages anyone with details to contact them or Crime Stoppers.

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