WASHINGTON — A man who once worked for Voice of America, the federally funded news organization gutted by the Trump administration, has been charged with phoning in threats to U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene.
The U.S. Department of Justice said in a news release that Seth Jason, a Maryland resident, was arrested Thursday morning. He had been indicted on charges of influencing a federal official by threatening a family member, influencing a federal official by threat, interstate communications with a threat to kidnap or injure, and anonymous telecommunications harassment.
The release said eight calls to Greene’s Dalton and Rome district offices were placed between October 2023 and continued until the day after Trump took office in January. The calls were traced back to phone lines at the Voice of America headquarters, and included threats to use a gun to kill Greene, her staff and their families.
Greene, R-Rome, is a polarizing political figure with a huge following on the far right. She has often been the target of threats and harassment, including swatting incidents where law enforcement was called to her home after false reports.
Greene said in a post on X that these incidents weigh on her.
“That kind of sustained, targeted harassment is deeply disturbing,” she said. “I truly feared for my life, as I do with all of the death threats I receive.”
Jason, 64 of Edgewater, Maryland, also volunteered as a reserve officer for the Anne Arundel County Police Department in Maryland. The department said in a statement he had served as a volunteer since 2016 but it no longer with the department.
At a news conference, Acting U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro read aloud some of the statements Jason is accused of making during the calls to Greene’s offices.
“I am looking forward to your book signing. We are all armed and ready to take care of you,” Jason said, according to Pirro.
“No one should have to live their life looking over their shoulder every day and wondering if those threats are about to be fulfilled and about to come true,” Pirro said.
The Associated Press contributed this report.
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