Man pleads guilty in threats against Arizona election workers

An Alabama man indicted for threatening election workers in Maricopa County, Ariz., pleaded guilty Thursday, according to the Department of Justice.

Brian Ogstad sent several messages over social media to election workers in the county during the 2022 primaries, at times threatening to kill the workers for being “cheats” and “frauds.”

Maricopa County, a key swing district in the state, attracted national attention after the 2020 election, when then-President Trump’s administration alleged that there was widespread voter fraud that led to his defeat. A GOP-led review found in September 2021 there was no support for stolen election claims.

“The functioning of our democracy requires that our country’s public servants be able to do their jobs without fearing for their lives,” U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland said in response to the conviction. 

“We have no tolerance for this kind of heinous criminal conduct and the danger it poses to people’s safety and to our democratic process. Threats and acts of violence targeting those who serve the public will be met with the full force of the United States Justice Department.”

Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco launched the Election Threats Task Force in June 2021, to address what she termed a “significant increase in the threat of violence against Americans who administer free and fair elections throughout our Nation.”

The U.S. attorney’s office has worked in conjunction with the FBI to prosecute threats against workers.

“The FBI takes seriously all threats of violence against public officials and will continue to pursue threats and acts of violence aimed at election workers,” FBI Director Christopher Wray said. 

Ogstad is scheduled to be sentenced Oct. 21 and faces up to five years in prison, according to the Justice Department.

“In a heightened political climate, people often make online remarks they wish they can take back,” Todd Spodek, Ogstad’s attorney, told CNN after the plea deal was reached. “Unfortunately, Mr. Ogstad let his emotions get the best of him and sent a number of messages that he regrets.”