By Steve Neavling
An Arkansas man who sent death threats to FBI agents and a former U.S. attorney was sentenced to 40 years in federal prison on Wednesday.
Clayton Jackson, 35, who was living in Dewitt, Arkansas, at the time, mailed two letters to the FBI office in Little Rock in February 2020 and March 2020, threatening to kill multiple bureau employees. Jackson signed the letters.
In an interview with the FBI, Jackson admitted sending the letters and repeated his intention to kill the employees.
After he was indicted, Jackson continued to send death threats to the employees and former U.S. Attorney Cody Hiland. In the letters, he said he planed to escape from prison to kill the employees and Hiland.
Jackson pleaded guilty on Nov. 2 to three counts of threatening to assault and murder a federal official and two counts of mailing threatening communications.
“This defendant’s repeated threats against law enforcement were a failed attempt to intimidate those who have sworn to protect and serve,” Acting United States Attorney Jonathan D. Ross said in a statement. “This lengthy sentence should serve as a warning: threats like these will not be tolerated and will not prevent law enforcement from doing their important work of protecting our communities.”
Jason Van Goor, acting special agent in charge of the Little Rock office, added, “We take any threat against law enforcement seriously, and we believe Mr. Jackson’s 40-year sentence will serve as a warning to anyone thinking about threatening federal agents and officers. As always, we are grateful to our partners at the US Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Arkansas for their tremendous work on this case.”
