Texas man to face charges of threatening to kill Georgia election and
government officials
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[February 04, 2022]
By Sarah N. Lynch
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A Texas man accused
by U.S. federal prosecutors of threatening to kill election and
government officials during a wave of violent rhetoric by believers in
former President Donald Trump's false claim of voter fraud is due in
court on Friday.
Chad Christopher Stark, 54, of Leander, Texas, is accused of posting a
Jan. 5. 2021 message on Craigslist that read in part: "Georgia Patriots
it's time to kill ... It's time for us to take back our state from these
Lawless treasonous traitors."
Stark is the first person charged by a new federal task force formed
shortly after Reuters published the first in a series of investigative
reports that have documented more than 850 threats and menacing messages
to U.S. election workers.
Stark could not be reached for comment. He is expected to be appointed a
federal defender.
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2022/Feb/04/images/ads/current/fricke_sda_LUAL_2021.png)
The Stark indictment did not identify the victims of his threats, but
Reuters previously reported that two of the officials include Secretary
of State Brad Raffensperger and Governor Brian Kemp.
Both Raffensperger and Kemp are Republicans who defended the integrity
of the Georgia election despite intense pressure from Trump, who in
January 2021 called Raffensperger and told him to find enough votes to
overturn his loss.
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![](../images/020421pics/news_b35.jpg)
An American flag sign is seen on a voting booth at Madison Square
Garden in Manhattan, New York, U.S. October 24, 2020. REUTERS/Jeenah
Moon/File Photo
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2022/Feb/04/images/ads/current/rohlfs_lda_072017.png) Trump continues to falsely claim he
lost the November 2020 election due to widespread fraud despite
multiple court losses and audits confirming Joe Biden's victory.
Remarks Trump made on Saturday at an event in Texas prompted a
Georgia prosecutor who is conducting a criminal investigation of the
former president to ask the FBI for protection.
Stark is currently out on bond and scheduled to appear before U.S.
Magistrate Judge Russell Vineyard in the U.S. District Court for the
Northern District of Georgia at 10:30 a.m. ET (1500 GMT).
His case is one of dozens under investigation by federal
authorities.
The Justice Department last week unveiled charges against a second
man - Gjergi Luke Juncal, 50, of Las Vegas who they accuse of making
threatening phone calls to a state election worker.
He has pleaded not guilty, and a trial was tentatively scheduled for
the end of March.
(Reporting by Sarah N. Lynch; Editing by Scott Malone and Lisa
Shumaker)
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