US Senator Ted Cruz, R-TX. Credit: AFP/Getty Images
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) reportedly received disturbing death threats from a man who threatened kidnap, murder and burn the GOP senator and his father unless he paid him $3 million.
Police later arrested 37-year-old Nick Gates over the death threat, according to the Harris County District Attorney's Office. Gates faces a felony charge for making a terroristic threat and was being held at the Harris County Jail in Houston under a $10,000 bail on Tuesday.
The Houston Chronicle has more details on the bizarre incident:
An intern at Cruz's Austin office told investigators that a man called the office on June 5, saying that Cruz "owed him money or a bomb would explode," according to an arrest warrant filed in the case. The man, who identified himself as Abolfazi Akbori, called again the same day after the office had closed and left a threatening message on the office's voicemail system.Another phone message was left at Cruz's San Antonio office containing threats that the caller "would kidnap, murder, and burn Ted Cruz and his father," the arrest warrant states.
The message states, "Ted has a choice. Give me three million dollars or lose the sun." The caller said that "due to government misconduct the sun would blow up and said he might be able to prevent the sun from blowing up if he receives three million dollars," according to the arrest warrant.
Cruz's staffers were reportedly given a photograph of Gates in case the man attempts to retaliate in some way. The man reportedly was convicted of a felony for threatening a police officer that arrested him for drunk driving.
(H/T: HuffPost)
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