Man accused of threatening the lives of presidential candidates goes on trial

CONCORD, NH – The trial of a New Hampshire man accused of threatening the lives of presidential candidates began Monday in federal court.

Tyler Anderson of Dover was indicted by a federal grand jury in December on three counts of transmitting a threat through interstate commerce. The jury trial is expected to last two to three days.

A message seeking comment was sent to Anderson’s attorney.

Anderson was arrested on December 9 and released on December 14. A federal judge imposed several conditions on his release, including that he avoid contact with presidential candidates and their political campaigns.

Anderson, who is receiving mental health treatment, was also ordered to take all his prescribed medications.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office did not name the candidates. When Anderson was arrested, a spokesperson for Republican candidate Vivek Ramaswamy said the lyrics were directed against his campaign.

According to court documents, Anderson received a text message from the candidate’s campaign informing him of a breakfast event in Portsmouth. In response, campaign staff received two text messages. One threatened to shoot the candidate in the head, and the other threatened to kill everyone at the event and desecrate their bodies.

Anderson had told the FBI in an interview that he had sent similar texts to “multiple other campaigns,” according to a court document.

According to the complaint, similar texts were sent to two different candidates before the Ramaswamy messages, on November 22 and December 6.

Each charge carries a penalty of up to five years in prison, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000.