Philadelphia man charged with election threats to 'skin' and kill state party official

Source: USA Today

Published 4:24 p.m. ET Oct. 21, 2024 | Updated 4:24 p.m. ET Oct. 21, 2024


A 62-year-old Philadelphia man was indicted Monday on charges he threatened a state party official who was recruiting poll watchers by texting he would “skin you alive" and kill the person, the Justice Department announced.

Because he used Apple's iMessage platform, John Pollard was charged federally with transmitting interstate threats, which carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison.

The case is part of a federal Election Threats Task Force, which features federal, state and local authorities cooperating to enforce laws against threatening election workers.

Pollard’s alleged victim, an employee of a state political party who lives in western Pennsylvania, wasn’t named in court records. But Pollard allegedly sent threatening text messages to the person on Sept. 6 at about 10 p.m. because the person was recruiting volunteers to serve as poll observers on Election Day.

Read more: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/elections/2024/10/21/election-threats-philadelphia-skin-kill/75781820007/