Trump supporter faces charges for threatening U.S. lawmaker

A Man Charged for Threatening Public Officials

A man has been arrested by U.S. federal authorities for allegedly sending numerous threatening and violent messages to public officials who he believed were opposing President Donald Trump’s agenda. The individual, Geoffrey Giglio, is accused of threatening a member of Congress and making interstate threats.

Giglio, a known supporter of Trump, has previously been questioned by at least four federal law enforcement agencies over similar behavior. This week, he was charged with threatening a member of the U.S. Congress, transmitting interstate threats, and making anonymous harassing communications. These charges are based on alleged actions directed at U.S. Representative Eric Swalwell, a California Democrat and frequent critic of Trump.

According to a federal complaint, Giglio left a voicemail for Swalwell in March that contained a warning: “If you want to keep fighting, then we will come get you.” He mentioned a .308 caliber rifle, stating, “I’ll just set up behind my .308 and I’ll do my job,” and ended the message with sexually explicit remarks about Swalwell’s wife.

In a follow-up call to Swalwell’s office in mid-June, after already being questioned by the FBI, Giglio told a staff intern, “Tell Eric Swalwell that we are coming and that we are going to handle everyone. We are going to hurt everyone,” as per the complaint.

The complaint also includes details of threats Giglio made to Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, a Democrat, and to an FBI agent investigating the matter. In a message to Benson, he said, “We are coming for you,” using explicit language and threatening to “put her in a hole.” During a June 3 interview with the FBI, Giglio admitted to sending the message.

On June 26, the day before his arrest, Giglio sent several hostile messages to the FBI agent, writing, “Now I’m coming for you,” according to the complaint. However, Giglio was not charged over the threats to Benson or the FBI agent, as stated in the complaint.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of California, which is handling the case, and the FBI have not commented on the matter. A public defender listed in court records as representing Giglio did not respond to requests for comment. The offices of Swalwell and Benson also did not immediately respond.

The White House condemned the threats against Swalwell. "As a survivor of multiple assassination attempts, the president takes these matters extremely seriously," said White House spokesperson Harrison Fields. "Anyone engaging in such behavior will be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law."

The complaint references a 2024 investigation that identified Giglio as a persistent source of threats against public officials, including judges, lawmakers, and state election officials. Despite multiple investigations by federal agencies, including the FBI and the Secret Service, Giglio had not previously been charged, as his messages often stopped short of the legal threshold for prosecution under the First Amendment, according to the report.

This arrest comes during the most sustained wave of U.S. political violence since the 1970s, including two assassination attempts against Trump last year and the murder in June of a former Democratic speaker of the Minnesota House of Representatives and her husband.