A Las Vegas man, Hadari Stallworth, has been sentenced to 18 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release for mailing a threatening letter to a federal judge and perpetrating an anthrax hoax. Senior District Judge John A. Mendez passed the sentence. United States Attorney Sigal Chattah for the District of Nevada emphasized the gravity of threats to judicial security, stating, “Threats of violence against a federal judge is a threat to our judicial system.” Chattah assured that actions against public servants would face full legal prosecution.
FBI Special Agent in Charge Spencer L. Evans also highlighted the implications of threats to public officials, remarking that such acts challenge democratic integrity. Evans reiterated the FBI's commitment to partnering with law enforcement to ensure justice.
Court documents reveal that Stallworth mailed threatening letters to the United States District Court Clerk in Las Vegas, addressing them to a District Judge. In a letter dated June 27, 2022, Stallworth threatened violence against the judge's family. A subsequent letter received on September 30, 2022, contained white powder with claims that it was anthrax, leading to office disruption and quarantine measures.
Stallworth has pled guilty to charges of mailing threatening communications and conveying false information and hoaxes. United States Attorney Chattah, FBI Special Agent Evans, and Marshal Gary Schofield announced the culmination of this joint investigation by the FBI and the United States Marshals Service, prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Edward Veronda and Melinda Brewer.