An Indiana man accused of making violent threats against local election officials in Michigan in 2020 pleaded guilty Tuesday.
Andrew Nickels of Carmel appeared in federal court on the day of Michigan’s presidential primary.
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Investigators say a voicemail was left on November 10, 2020, one week after the last presidential election, threatening to kill a store clerk in a Detroit suburb and accusing him of fraud. Investigators said Nickels said the clerk deserved to have “a knife held to his throat” because he said there was no fraud in the election.
Then-President Donald Trump, who lost to Joe Biden, also made that claim in Michigan and other states. Mr. Trump and Mr. Biden participated in the state’s presidential primary voting for their respective parties on Tuesday. Each is expected to receive a nomination.
The victims of the 2020 threat were not identified in court documents. But Tina Barton, a Republican who served as Rochester Hills clerk during her campaign, mentioned the incident on X, formerly known as Twitter.
Theodore Levin Federal Courthouse photographed on July 11, 2011 in Detroit. An Indiana man accused of making violent threats against local election officials in Michigan in 2020 pleaded guilty on Tuesday, February 27, 2024. By Andrew Nickels Carmel appeared in federal court on the day of Michigan’s presidential primary. Investigators say a voicemail was left on November 10, 2020, one week after the last presidential election, threatening to kill a store clerk in a Detroit suburb and accusing him of fraud. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio)
“We will never be able to turn back the clock and return to the peaceful and safe life we had before this incident,” Barton wrote on Tuesday. “I strongly believe that election officials should never be intimidated, intimidated, or harassed because they do their job to serve the public.”
Defense attorney Steve Schag told the Detroit News that Nickels is struggling with his mental health.
“I wish there were more treatments available to help people with mental health issues,” he says.
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Mr. Nickels is scheduled to reappear in court for sentencing on July 9. The maximum penalty for interstate threatening communication is five years in prison.
