Gastonia man faces federal charges for threatening to kill President Joe Biden

GASTONIA, N.C. — A Gaston County man has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Charlotte for threatening to kill President Joe Biden and other related charges.

A federal criminal complaint was unsealed in federal court on Feb. 11, charging 27-year-old David Kyle Reeves with threatening the President of the United States.

Officials said Reeves, who lives with his father in Gastonia, was arrested on Feb. 5 and appeared in court the following Thursday before U.S. Magistrate Judge David C. Keesler.

According to allegations in the affidavit filed with the criminal complaint, between Jan. 28 and Feb. 1, Reeves called the White House switchboard several times and made angry threats against President Biden and other federal officials.

According to the affidavit, a switchboard operator notified the Secret Service that Reeves called and said, “I am going to (expletive) kill you all, (expletive) the White House. I am going to chop your heads off.”

In one of calls, Reeves appeared to threaten to kill members of Congress, according to the affidavit. In another, he told the Secret Service “to come pick him up, and take him to the White House so he can punch the President in the face, sit in his chair, and stay there until he dies.”

The criminal complaint also alleges that on Feb. 1 a Secret Service agent contacted Reeves to discuss the threats. Reeves allegedly called the Secret Service agent back several times throughout the day and repeated the threats.

“I’m going to come kill the president, I’m going to kill the Secret Service because I own this whole planet,” Reeves said in a phone call to the Secret Service Special Agent Scott Jensen, according to an affidavit.

According to filed court documents, on the same day, Reeves also called the U.S. Capitol Police switchboard and made similar threats.

The next day, Reeves called the Secret Service agent again and said he realizes he will probably get sentenced to a couple years in prison, but he predicted he will get out early because he will only read books, according to the affidavit. He then said when he gets out of prison, he is going to call the Secret Service agent and kill him, according to filed court documents.

The indictment charges Reeves with making a threat against the president, which carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

He is also charged with two counts of interstate communications with intent to injure, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine per count, and influencing a federal official by threat, which carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

Reeves is currently in federal custody, and his court hearing on the new charges has not been scheduled yet.

According to the affidavit, Reeves has a long list of past criminal charges, including assault, family violence, terroristic acts and threats, assault on a law enforcement officer, resisting arrest, violation of family violence order and criminal trespass.

The Secret Service is investigating the case.

Reeves is the second Charlotte-area suspect linked to possible threats against Biden, who was sworn in last month as the country’s 46th president.

Check back with wsoctv.com for updates on this story.

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