A Democrat running for U.S. Senate in Wilkinsburg, Pennsylvania, allegedly threatened President Donald Trump and a member of Congress’s family in disturbing voicemails.
The suspect was identified as Raymond Eugene Chandler III, who recently launched his campaign to run against Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA), was arrested and charged after federal officials investigated, the Daily Voice reported Saturday.
The Voice article cited a criminal complaint that was unsealed in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania which alleged the suspect left multiple voicemails over the past year, noting authorities explained “the calls were part of a broader pattern of escalating rhetoric.”
Chandler is facing two charges that include influencing, impeding, or retaliating against a federal official by threatening a family member and by threatening a federal official, and influencing, impeding, or retaliating against a federal official by threat, according to WTAE.
The outlet also shared the transcripts of Chandler’s alleged phone calls reported in court documents:
Sir, I have, uh, I’m calling this morning ’cause I want you to imagine a scenario. I want you to imagine a scenario where all the 1,200 billionaires in this country, all their properties are surrounded simultaneously by a thousand people. So imagine your house, your daughter’s house, everyone you know and love who is also rich. Imagine every single one of those homes being surrounded by a thousand people.
Then imagine them all getting a text and then, then suddenly taking out their pocket knives, walking slowly towards your house with 10, you got your 10 guards or whatever against a thousand people, and then they come and they pull you out of your house and they slit your throat and they slit your daughter’s throat and they slit everyone’s throat. That you know, sir, that is the future. It’s not a future I want, it’s not a future I’m advocating for, but wealth concentration has gotten so bad in this country. The greed has gotten so bad. People are suffering so much, sir, that that is what is in our future. You will not escape their wrath. We must redistribute the wealth away from people like you.
In a second phone call, Chandler allegedly told the member of Congress he wanted that person to assassinate Trump.
“Sir, I’m calling this evening because what I want you to do is I want you to take a firearm. I want you to put it in your hand. I want you to walk into the Oval Office. I want you to put that firearm to the President’s head, and I want you to pull the trigger and I want you to kill him,” he allegedly said, then called Trump a “liar” and “the antichrist.”
According to his campaign website, Chandler said he was running for the senate to replace Fetterman. On his values page, Chandler described himself as “a Quaker; a Christian; a Buddhist; and a follower of the Way of Hermes.”
He also said in 2020 and 2021, he “volunteered as a protest medic in Columbus, Ohio during the Black Lives Matter movement after the murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis police” and he wanted to use his website to teach people how to “resist legally, ethically, and responsibly.”
When it came to what he wanted to accomplish in Washington, DC, Chandler told readers his goals were to tax the billionaires, abolish ICE, build Medicare for all, and establish a universal basic income.
Per the Voice report, Chandler was allegedly supportive of armed resistance against federal authorities, talked about setting up a gallows for the congressman, and claimed his fear of the government inspired him to buy weapons.
Prosecutors are working to keep Chandler in custody as the case moves forward, and the Voice report added that “Due to the nature of the threats, increased security measures were implemented for federal officials and their families, investigators noted.”
President Donald Trump has survived three assassination attempts, and White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said recently that the latest attempt on his life stemmed from over a decade of leftists, commentators, and media demonizing the president, according to Breitbart News.
“Nobody in recent years has faced more bullets and more violence than President Trump. This political violence stems from a systemic demonization of him and his supporters, by commentators; yes, by elected members of the Democrat Party; and even some in the media,” she said. “This hateful and constant and violent rhetoric directed at President Trump, day after day after day for 11 years, has helped to legitimize this violence and bring us to this dark moment.”
Her comments came days after suspected gunman Cole Tomas Allen was accused of trying to storm the White House Correspondents’ Dinner and target the president and his administration’s officials.
The WTAE article also shared a statement from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) regarding Chandler’s case.
“This morning, FBI Pittsburgh and the U.S. Secret Service arrested Raymond Chandler for threatening to kill federal officials, including President Trump and a member of Congress. The FBI will not tolerate threats of violence and will work tirelessly to protect public officials and all members of our communities. This arrest is a great example of our work with our law enforcement partners at the USSS, the U.S. Capitol Police, and the United States Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Pennsylvania,” authorities said.
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