Man arrested for allegedly sending death threats to Dr. Fauci

A federal criminal complaint has been filed against Thomas Patrick Connally Jr. of Maryland, accusing him of sending threatening emails to Dr. Fauci and Dr. Collins via an encrypted Swiss email service. According to an affidavit, one of the many emails sent between December 28, 2020 to July 21, 2021 threatened that Dr. Fauci and his family would be "dragged into the street, beaten to death, and set on fire."

Acting U.S. Attorney Jonathan Lenzner stated that the United States government "will never tolerate violent threats against public officials," adding that "public health officials deserve our thanks and appreciation for their tireless work, and we will not hesitate to bring charges against those individuals who seek to use fear to silence these public servants."

Connally is facing charges of "threats against a federal official" and "interstate communication containing a threat to harm." According to a release issued by the Department of Justice, he is set to appear at the U.S. District Court in Greenbelt on Wednesday, July 28.

The release states that "if convicted, Connally faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in federal prison for threats against a federal official; and a maximum of five years in federal prison for interstate communication containing a threat to harm."