Federal authorities have charged Shannon Mathre, a 33-year-old from Toledo, Ohio, with threatening to kill Vice President JD Vance during his January visit to northwest Ohio.
The U.S. Department of Justice unveiled the indictment on February 6, 2026, exposing Mathre's vile plot alongside his possession of child sexual abuse materials uncovered during the probe.
According to court documents, on January 21, 2026, Mathre declared he would track Vance and "use my M14 automatic gun and kill him." Attorney General Pam Bondi blasted the threat, stating, "You can hide behind a screen, but you cannot hide from this Department of Justice." Secret Service agents arrested Mathre on February 6, 2026, and he pleaded not guilty in federal court that day. He remains jailed ahead of a detention hearing on February 11, 2026.
The child pornography charges are based on material Mathre received and distributed between December 31, 2025, and January 21, 2026. If convicted of making threats, Mathre faces up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The child exploitation charge carries a maximum sentence of 20 years and an additional $250,000 fine.
This is the second recent federal case involving threats against Vice President Vance, following an earlier incident involving threats of violence and pipe bombs during his family's trip to Disneyland.