Federal prosecutors say a string of violent emails, including one that allegedly threatened to “blow your head off with a shotgun,” has landed a Pittsburgh man before a grand jury. Thirty-one-year-old John Radford has been indicted on two counts of making interstate threats for messages authorities say were sent in September and December 2024. The case is in its early stages, and Radford is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.
According to WPXI, a federal grand jury in Pittsburgh returned the indictment this month. The charges, two counts of transmitting threats across state lines, are federal offenses that prosecutors brought after reviewing the emails.
Prosecutors told WPXI that one December 2024 message said, “I say we blow your head off with a shotgun!” and allegedly named the shotgun as a “mosberg 940,” adding it would be used “late at night when you’re walk back to your car.” The indictment also alleges a September 2024 email warned a victim that a “list” of “people…ahead of you” was “all there is keeping you alive,” and identified the victim’s spouse and children.
What the Law Says
Federal law makes it a crime to send threats across state lines. Under 18 U.S.C. § 875(c), transmitting a communication that contains a threat to injure another person is punishable by up to five years in prison and a fine, and courts look to Supreme Court precedent when deciding whether speech qualifies as a “true threat.”
Local Precedent
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Pennsylvania has recently pursued similar online-threat prosecutions, emphasizing that threats targeting people doing public or private work can be handled in federal court. In December 2025, the office reported that a Philadelphia man pleaded guilty after sending violent messages to an election worker, noting such cases can carry prison time and significant fines, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office, Western District of Pennsylvania.
Next Steps
An indictment is only an accusation, and the case will move forward in federal court where prosecutors must prove the charges beyond a reasonable doubt. The timetable for arraignment or further hearings was not included in public reporting, and officials did not immediately release additional comment.
