A 25-year-old Georgia man faces federal charges for allegedly making violent threats against U.S. Senators Ted Cruz of Texas and Deb Fischer of Nebraska, as well as Cruz’s family, the Department of Justice announced.
Robert Davis Forney of Duluth, Georgia, was indicted by a federal grand jury on June 10 and charged with communicating threats in interstate commerce. He appeared before a federal magistrate judge in Atlanta on Monday for arraignment.
According to prosecutors, Forney left threatening voicemails in January targeting Cruz and Fischer, including threats of sexual violence against both senators and Cruz’s family.
“Threatening our elected officials and their families is an act of violence that undermines our entire democracy,” U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia Theodore S. Hertzberg said in a statement. “Political discourse and disagreements never justify resorting to vile attacks against our nation’s leaders.”
FBI Special Agent Paul Brown, based in Atlanta, underscored the severity of the allegations, stating, “There is no place for political violence or threats of violence in the United States.”
The case is part of the Justice Department’s “Operation Take Back America,” a nationwide initiative to combat violent crime and illegal immigration, according to the statement from the Department of Justice. The FBI and United States Capitol Police are investigating, with Assistant U.S. Attorneys Bret R. Hobson and Brent Alan Gray leading the prosecution.
If convicted, Forney could face federal prison time. A federal public defender assigned to Forney did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The charges come amid heightened concerns about violence against political figures following recent targeted attacks in Minnesota, where former State House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband were killed, and State Senator John Hoffman and his wife were shot. Authorities arrested suspect Vance Boelter after a two-day manhunt in that case.