Prosecutors said he publicly advocated the death of then-President-elect Donald Trump, citing “assassin” and threatened to shoot the 47th commander-in-chief shortly after the election.
The words remained on Facebook posts at the center of the federal grand jury indictment. On Tuesday, Yuca Valley resident Thomas Eugene Streavel, 73, pleaded not guilty to three felony counts.
The San Bernardino County man was arrested by the U.S. Marshal before 11 a.m. Monday and was arraigned the next day in Riverside Central District Court.
He received the bonds on a margin of $10,000 and is expected to return to court on July 28. If convicted on all charges, Streavel could be sentenced to 15 years in jail.
“This defendant is charged with threatening the life of our president – a man who has survived two attempts to make mistakes,” General Pam Bundy said in a statement. “The Department of Justice takes these threats with the greatest gravitation and will prosecute the offence to the greatest extent of the law.”
There are no answers to the number of Streavel listed, nor are there any attorneys listed in court documents.
His actions were detailed in Tuesday's unsealed grand jury indictment starting May 29.
According to days after Trump's election victory in November, Streve issued various threats. Ministry of Justice.
“[T]The hip is a dead man until a patriot like me blows him [expletive] According to court documents, Streavel was released on November 6.
Six days later, Streve posted on Facebook that he “will to make America great again and blow him [expletive] brain,” the indictment said.
There was a similar Facebook roar between November 19 and 28.
In an earlier case, he wrote: “Let me put a bullet between the ears of the president-elect…it’s my purpose in life,” the indictment said.
He later published, “I am praying for the successful assassination of your elected president.” He then added, “My life’s mission is to kill worthless losers [expletive] My mission begins tonight, so be aware of your own Trump [sic]you're dead [expletive] I am your assassin,” court documents show.
Streve's post extends to the election, when on October 15, he wrote: “Today is the best day to brag, and I'd love to be the one to pull the trigger.”
The Secret Service is also investigating the matter.
“The defendant's words and threat types are similar to those that led to the attempted attempt last year,” said Atyli. “In a place where there is no political violence or threat of violence in the United States.”
Trump was injured in a shooting at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania on July 13. The shooting killed a rally attendee and two seriously injured, while an unidentified gunman was killed by the Secret Service.
On September 15, at the West Palm Beach Golf Course in Trump, Florida, a Secret Service agent poked an area in one or two holes in front of him and saw the muzzle of an AK-47-style weapon pointing to the tree line of the perimeter of the route.
Trump was not hurt in his second attempt in two months.
