By Steve Neavling
An Arizona man has been indicted for making violent threats against FBI agents.
Ishmael Hart is accused of sending a series of alarming messages to the FBI’s National Threat Operations Center in West Virginia, where he threatened to kill agents after claiming the bureau was targeting him.
Hart’s threats reportedly began in September when he accused the FBI of following him and attempting to “unalive” him. His messages escalated, with Hart warning the agency to respond to him, “or I’m going to start killing you all. Only the bad.”
Before the threatening messages, Hart had visited the FBI offices in Phoenix on two occasions, where he claimed he had been kidnapped. According to court documents, he became irate with security, refused to leave the premises, and was observed walking around the building’s perimeter.
When questioned by agents following his arrest, Hart admitted to sending the threats, explaining that his frustration stemmed from the FBI’s failure to address his kidnapping allegations.
Hart has a prior criminal record, including a 2018 arrest in Kentucky for carrying a concealed weapon and a 2021 domestic violence arrest in Tennessee. In early 2023, Phoenix police also detained Hart and transported him to a mental health facility after a separate incident.
A federal grand jury indicted Hart on one count of Interstate Threatening Communications, and he is scheduled to appear in court for arraignment on October 30.
