A Chicago man has been charged with making a threat to "shoot up" an office of the United States Secret Service and to "hunt" an agent, according to an announcement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Illinois on April 9.
The case highlights ongoing concerns about threats made against law enforcement officers and public officials, as well as the seriousness with which federal authorities respond to such incidents.
According to a criminal complaint unsealed in U.S. District Court in Chicago, Michael Kovco sent an electronic message via the official White House website on March 19, stating his intent to buy a firearm and target a Secret Service agent's workplace if given identifying information. The message was sent approximately two hours after agents visited Kovco’s residence regarding a previous threat he had made on March 17 against President Donald J. Trump and one of Trump's sons. Kovco signed that earlier message using explicit language indicating violent intent toward one of Trump's children.
Kovco, age 29, has been charged with transmitting a threat in interstate commerce and was arrested on April 3. A detention hearing is scheduled for April 10 in federal court in Chicago, where prosecutors will seek his continued detention pending trial. The charge carries a maximum sentence of five years in federal prison if convicted; sentencing would be determined under federal statutes and advisory guidelines.
United States Attorney Andrew S. Boutros said, “As I have stated repeatedly during my first year as United States Attorney, it is never acceptable to threaten a law enforcement officer, political figure, or a member of their family.” He added: “Under my watch, political violence will be dealt with as the serious federal crime that it is. Working closely with our federal and state law enforcement partners, the Chicago U.S. Attorney’s Office will find, arrest, and prosecute to the fullest extent of the law those responsible for criminally threatening the safety of our public officials and law enforcement officers.”
Dai Tran, Special Agent-in-Charge of the U.S. Secret Service Chicago Field Office said: “The U.S. Secret Service’s top priority is safeguarding the President of the United States and all those we protect. We take any threats seriously and aggressively pursue them to ensure our protectees’ safety. I commend our agents’ work in bringing this defendant to justice. I want to thank our partners at the Chicago Police Department and the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Northern District of Illinois for their help in pursuing this case.”
Officials remind that charges are not evidence of guilt; defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond reasonable doubt.
