BOSTON — A Lynn man has admitted to threatening to “violently murder” an elected official and his family in 2024, the U.S. Attorney said Monday.
Justin David Gaglio, 51, pleaded guilty on Monday to one count of transmitting interstate threats, U.S. Attorney Leah Foley said in a statement. He was charged in October 2024.
U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani scheduled sentencing for Sept. 9.
The elected official targeted by Gaglio, who maintains an office in Washington, D.C., was not identified in the criminal complaint.
Around January 2023, Gaglio began contacting the elected official via online submissions through the elected official’s website, Foley said.
Between January 2023 and September 2024, Gaglio submitted more than 80 separate messages to the elected official via the website, sometimes sending multiple messages within minutes of each other.
In his messages, Gaglio “claimed to have been mistreated by various different government agencies, and he requested assistance and payment from the Elected Official,” the criminal complaint states.
Gaglio’s “claims of mistreatment were unfounded and not supported by any evidence,” the complaint states.
On or about Sept. 8, 2024, Gaglio submitted a contact request to the elected official’s website in which he threatened to violently murder the elected official and the elected official’s family, Foley said.
“I am going to murder your entire family!” Gaglio wrote in his threat to the elected official, according to the criminal complaint. “I am contemplating going yo (sic) your home and butchering your (expletive) family (redacted)!”
Gaglio included the name of the elected official’s spouse and grandchild in his threats, the criminal complaint states.
Court documents show that among his messages to the elected official, Gaglio entered a primary address of 534 Essex St. in Lynn, which is the location of a homeless shelter.
For the charge of transmitting interstate threats, Gaglio faces a maximum penalty of up to 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000.
Gaglio’s guilty plea came the same day the Department of Justice announced federal charges against Vance Boelter, the man accused of shooting and killing one Minnesota lawmaker and wounding another.
Boelter is accused of fatally shooting former Democratic House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, in their home early Saturday in the northern Minneapolis suburbs, the Associated Press reported.
Authorities said Boelter also shot Sen. John Hoffman, a Democrat, and his wife, Yvette, who lived just a few miles away.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
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