Paul Vernon Hoeffer, 60, pleaded guilty in federal court to the interstate transmission of threats to harm House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and Chicago Democrat District Attorney Kim Foxx, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced Friday.
Hoeffer called the office of Pelosi in March 2019, stating he had come a "long way" to "rattle" her head with bullets and threatened to behead her.
The DOJ also stated he had called Ocasio-Cortez and Foxx's office with similar threats.
The news comes as lawmakers have become concerned with their safety following the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot, according to The Hill.
Capitol Police Chief J. Thomas Manger said threats against members of Congress have risen from 3,900 in 2017 to 9,600 last year, according to NBC News.
Hoeffer's sentencing by U.S. District Judge Aileen M. Cannon will occur April 1 in Fort Pierce. Assistant U.S. Attorney Luisa Honora Berti is prosecuting the case, The Hill reported.
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