A man has been arrested and accused of sending a threatening letter to conservative influencer Benny Johnson wishing death upon him and his whole family, according to Attorney General Pam Bondi.
Back in her hometown of Tampa, Florida, on Oct. 10, Bondi said that George Russell Isbell Jr., 69, of San Diego, was arrested and charged with the federal crime of mailing threatening communications.
“The author of this letter made it very clear that he hated Benny because of his views, and he wanted Benny dead,” Bondi said during a news conference. ”This was a coward hiding behind a keyboard who thought he could get away with this. That’s why we’re standing up here today. You are not going to get away with threatening people in this way.”
Greg Kehoe, U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Florida, touted the arrest as a coordinated effort between local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies and the U.S. Postal Service.
After receiving the letter, Johnson contacted the Tampa Police Department, which then contacted the FBI. The Postal Service then quickly confirmed that the letter was sent from San Diego, and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement found fingerprints on the letter identifying Isbell.
According to the complaint, Isbell mailed the letter to Johnson on or about Sept. 18. The arrest was made on Oct. 7 in San Diego by the FBI in coordination with the local U.S. Attorney’s Office and the San Diego Police Department.
Isbell is being prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Wheeler III for the Middle District of Florida in federal court. He faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison, although the Department of Justice said that “a federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.”
Kehoe said that, in the letter, the author was “calling for the extermination of Mr. Johnson, that he should be strangled by an American flag, that he hopes somebody blows his head off, and then some vicious, vicious comments thereafter.”
Johnson also addressed the attending media and provided further details.
“The individual who wrote me described why he wanted me dead: I was a white, cis, Christian Trump supporter,” he said. “They described in great detail how I would be killed in an open field, just like Charlie [Kirk], how much blood would come out of my head and neck when it was blown off. This individual described orphaning my four beautiful children and widowing my wife with great joy.”
Bondi emphasized that this arrest should serve as a reminder of what will happen to all who seek to make threats of political violence across the country.
“We don’t care if you’re across the country in California; we will find you,” she said. “We will arrest you. We will extradite you, and we will bring you to justice.”
Bondi, Johnson, and Kehoe recognized that this threatening letter was just the latest example of a growing number of threats and actions of political violence that have occurred across the country in recent weeks and months. Along with the assassination of Kirk, the list of recent incidents they cited included the attack on Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, the failed attack on a Catholic Church in Washington, and the shooting of Christian school children in Minnesota.
“I don’t want political violence,” Johnson said. ”I want peace in my nation. I love this country—love this country. I want to be able to debate like Charlie did and be able to raise my family in peace. That is our birthright.”














