KANNAPOLIS, N.C. — A 19-year-old man arrested earlier this year, after authorities found an abandoned van filled with guns, ammunition and explosives at a North Carolina bank, had plotted to kill Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden, according to court records.
Authorities said Alexander Hillel Treisman, who also went by the alias Alexander S. Theiss, posted a meme online in April which included the caption, “should I kill joe biden?” Officials said that at one point, he ended up at a Wendy’s restaurant within four miles of Biden’s home.
Police arrested Treisman after getting a call from employees about an abandoned van parked at the Fifth Third Bank in Kannapolis in May. Through the van’s windows, officers saw an AR-15 style rifle, a box for a handgun, a cannister of explosive materials and ammunition, according to court records.
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At the bank manager’s request, police towed the van. A subsequent search of the vehicle turned up “approximately $509,000 in cash (believed to be the Defendant’s inheritance), books (about survival, bomb making, improvised weapons and Islam), drawings of swastikas and planes crashing into buildings, and the following firearms: a Sig Sauer AR rifle, an Intratec 9mm Luger, a Lower AR receiver, a Kel-Tec Sub-2000, a .22 caliber rifle marked ArchAngel, and a Russian Mosin Nagant M91/30 bolt action rifle,” according to court records.
Later in the day, authorities said Treisman showed up at the bank in another car and asked about the van, prompting another call to police. Officers arrested Treisman and searched the car, where they found two more firearms hidden in a clothes hamper and identification cards for Washington, California and Florida, with Treisman’s name or his alias on them.
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A search of Treisman’s phone and other electronics found in the van and the car uncovered nearly 8,000 pornographic videos and images of children. Police arrested the 19-year-old on child pornography charges.
In court last month, authorities shared a note found on Treisman’s phone that described a plan to carry out a mass shooting on a mall food court either on Christmas Day or on Black Friday. Prosecutors also shared images of online posts allegedly made by Treisman in which he talked about raping children and “executing those he hates.” In an April 8 post online, Treisman said he was “going to do a columbine for a while, [but] I think it would better to put it towards something more memorable,” authorities said.
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Court records show Treisman has not been charged with any crimes related to his alleged threats. The allegations were brought to light in a court order filed this month granting prosecutors' request to hold Treisman without bail in connection with the child pornography charges.
He remains in custody at Cabarrus County Jail, according to WSOC-TV.
The threat is not the first to be made against high-profile Democrats this year. Earlier this month, federal investigators announced that they busted a plot to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, who has been criticized for enacting lockdown orders aimed at curbing the spread of the coronavirus. Officials with the FBI later said the group responsible for the plot had also discussed kidnapping Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam.
Officials in Maryland on Wednesday said they arrested a 42-year-old man, James Dale Reed, on suspicion of threatening to kidnap and kill Biden and his running mate, Sen. Kamala Harris. Authorities said Reed also threatened supporters of the Democratic ticket.