Colorado man charged with alleged threats against Tesla owners and presidential cabinet

A Colorado man is facing a federal charge after allegedly sending emails titled “Declaration of War,” threatening Tesla owners, President Donald Trump’s cabinet and Elon Musk, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado announced Wednesday.

Carl Howard Payne Jr., of Colorado Springs, was arrested by the FBI and charged with interstate communication of threats after allegedly sending the emails from a Proton Mail account on March 20 to various news outlets in multiple states. In a press release, federal prosecutors alleged that Payne Jr. described how Tesla owners would be murdered in “newsworthy killings” from April 17 onwards until the Tesla CEO’s death.

If convicted, Payne Jr. faces up to 5 years’ imprisonment, $250,000 fine, or both, and 3 years’ supervised release.

Payne Jr. denied sending the emails to the FBI on Tuesday and it is not immediately clear if he has retained a lawyer.

According to a criminal complaint, the emails allegedly sent by Payne Jr. extensively attacked Trump’s presidency and cabinet and called for the current government to be abolished. The emails also allegedly detailed “Operation: Swasticar” with the objective of killing Musk and Tesla drivers “at their homes, on the road, while shopping, or at Nazi charging stations.”

“Death is no threat to Those under the boot, but We deeply regret its necessity in this matter [sic],” the email stated, according to the criminal complaint.

The same message was also sent to ProPublica and Thomson Reuters in New York from a Signal user “c,” the complaint says.

Federal prosecutors say that the IP address associated with the Proton Mail account, along with other evidence, indicates that Payne Jr. was the alleged user of both the Proton Mail and Signal accounts, the complaint says.

Another line of an email read, “We are Luigi. We Are One [sic],” the complaint says, seeming to reference Luigi Mangione, the accused killer of United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson.

Payne Jr. allegedly sent similar threatening letters around April 2 to several insurance companies, with a return address of “The White House,” but postmarked from Denver, according to the complaint.

“We recommend you cancel all comprehensive vehicle coverage of Tesla vehicles effective 16 April 2025,” the letter stated, according to the criminal complaint.

After Payne Jr.’s arrest, authorities found three handguns during a search of his house, including a .40 caliber pistol and two rifles. The .40 caliber was specifically mentioned in the “operation” details of the email, among others things, the complaint says.

Payne Jr. previously worked in technology management and the software industry, and his only criminal record was an expired vehicle registration, according to the complaint.

Payne Jr. initially appeared in court on Wednesday. His detention hearing is set for Tuesday morning.