An Alabama man has been charged in connection with threats against the prosecutor who brought the election interference case against former President Donald Trump and his allies in Fulton County, Georgia, according to court documents unsealed Monday.
A federal grand jury in Atlanta on Wednesday indicted Arthur Ray Hanson II of Huntsville, Alabama, on charges of transmitting interstate threats to injure Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis over her involvement in the election case, the Justice Department said in a news release.
Hanson made an initial appearance in federal court in Huntsville and will be formally arraigned in Atlanta on Nov. 13, the Justice Department said.
According to court documents, before Trump was indicted in the Fulton County probe in August, Hanson, 59, called the county government’s customer service line and left a threatening voicemail for Willis, a Democrat who oversaw charges against Trump and 18 co-defendants related to efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election results in the state.
In an Aug. 6 voicemail that specifically referred to the forthcoming indictment of Trump in Georgia, Hanson allegedly made threats against Willis and warned her to watch her back when she was alone.
The district attorney’s office declined to comment on the indictment.
Hanson left another voicemail on Aug. 6 threatening Sheriff Patrick Labat in a message that referred to Trump, according to court documents. The message specifically warned Labat against taking a mug shot of the former president, suggesting that he would be subject to violence if he did so.
The sheriff’s office took mug shots of all the defendants charged in the election case. Trump’s photo was released Aug. 24 shortly after he was booked on felony charges. Trump has pleaded not guilty.
In a statement Monday, Labat said he and Willis had been subject to threats of harm “for simply doing our job,” adding that he would continue to serve Fulton County “with the utmost integrity.”
A court document unsealed Monday did not list an attorney for Hanson.
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