A 30-year-old New Hampshire man on trial for allegedly threatening to kill presidential candidates was found dead in a vehicle Wednesday.
Tyler Anderson’s trial began Monday, however the news of his death broke as the jury was deliberating the verdict, The Associated Press (AP) reported. Under orders to take his prescribed medicine, Anderson had been receiving mental health treatment at the time of his death, however it is unknown whether this played in a role in his death, the outlet noted.
A New Hampshire man charged with threatening the lives of presidential candidates has been found dead while a jury was deciding the verdict, according to court filings. https://t.co/BX9pvCtYfU
— The Associated Press (@AP) June 27, 2024
Federal prosecutors have since moved to dismiss the indictment following Anderson’s death, which police have ruled as not suspicious, WMUR 9 reported. (RELATED: Pamela Smart Finally Admits Her Role In Sensational Murder Plot Of Husband In 1990)
The government reportedly indicted Anderson in December of 2023 on three counts of sending a threat through interstate commerce, with the maximum sentence for each charge being five years in prison, three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine.
Federal prosecutors refused to name the candidates he allegedly threatened at the time of the indictment, however a spokesman for Vivek Ramaswamy’s campaign at the time claimed that the texts were sent to them, the outlet reported.
Prosecutors also alleged that Anderson sent similar texts to two other campaigns, with one court document showing a screenshot of a text threatening a mass shooting at a Chris Christie campaign event, according to The AP. The court documents also stated Nikki Haley as a candidate who received threats.
Anderson’s lawyers argued that some of their client’s messages were protected under the First Amendment, The AP noted.
