An Indiana man has copped to a heinous threat against a Michigan election worker, with a plea of guilty to charges of making threatening interstate communication, federal authorities announced. Andrew Nickels, a 37-year-old from Carmel, Indiana, admitted to leaving a terrifying voicemail for a municipal clerk in which he vowed to commit deadly violence, claiming election fraud and unleashing a tirade against the process of democracy itself.
In a statement obtained by CBS Detroit, U.S. Attorney Dawn Ison detailed the gravity of the threats, saying, "No public official should face the violent threats that the victim in this case did, just for doing their job of ensuring the fairness and integrity our federal, state, and local elections,"
According to a press release from the Justice Department, Nickels' threatening communication was made on November 10, 2020, after a heated election cycle that saw much contention and claims of irregularities. He was charged with delivering a message so virulent, it implicated millions of "so-called 'patriots'" as complicit in his threat to mete out lethal punishment on the election official.
Nickels, who now faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison, chillingly warned the clerk “We’re watching your…mouth talk about how you think that there’s no irregularities…[Y]ou frauded out America of a real election.” as reported by Acting Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division. Special Agent in Charge Cheyvoryea Gibson of the FBI Detroit Field Office reinforced the government's stance against such intimidation, stating election workers must be protected to maintain the integrity of our democratic system.
The case was brought as part of the Justice Department's Election Threats Task Force, an initiative launched in 2021 focused on the safety of election workers and the preservation of a peaceful democratic process. Sentencing for Nickels is slated for July 9.
