Kari Lake, who serves as the senior advisor for the U.S. Agency for Global Media, said a Voice of America employee was indicted for threatening Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA).
“A Voice of America Employee has been Indicted for Threatening Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene using phones at the VOA studios to threaten Greene and her staff. The phone calls came from inside the VOA studios and control room where threats were made to the district offices of Congresswoman Greene over a 15-month-period,” Lake explained.
“The indictment says the VOA employee threatened to kidnap and use firearms to kill Greene, her staff and their families. The calls started in Oct. 2023 with the last call coming the day after President Trump was inaugurated. VOA employee, Seth Jason, was arrested early this morning. He will face a judge this afternoon. If convicted he could face nearly 20 years in prison,” she continued.
A Voice of America Employee has been Indicted for Threatening Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene using phones at the VOA studios to threaten Greene and her staff.
The phone calls came from inside the VOA studios and control room where threats were made to the district offices of…— Kari Lake (@KariLake) July 17, 2025
“As the Trump Adminstration official overseeing VOA, I thank @JudgeJeanine Pirro for taking these threats seriously. I am sickened by what Congresswoman @RepMTG, her staff and their families had to go through as the threats persisted for 15 months. It angers me that a taxpayer-funded VOA employee, would use taxpayer-funded equipment in a depraved way to threaten the lives of people, including an elected official,” Lake continued.
“If he is found guilty, I hope he is sentenced to the maximum amount of time behind bars. This indictment and arrest illustrates only a small part of the past rot at Voice of America and the US Agency for Global Media. President Trump wants the agency eliminated–I agree with him–it’s time to shut it down,” she concluded.
As the Trump Adminstration official overseeing VOA, I thank @JudgeJeanine Pirro for taking these threats seriously. I am sickened by what Congresswoman @RepMTG, her staff and their families had to go through as the threats persisted for 15 months. It angers me that a…
— Kari Lake (@KariLake) July 17, 2025
More from the Justice Department:
Seth Jason, of Edgewater, Maryland, was arrested by U.S. Capitol Police and the Anne Arundel Police Department early this morning, July 17, 2025. Jason will make his initial appearance this afternoon before a magistrate judge in U.S. District Court
According to the indictment, between Oct. 11, 2023, and Jan. 21, 2025, Jason made threatening calls to the Dalton and Rome District Offices for Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R, Ga.).
The U.S. Capitol Police investigation revealed that the phone calls were made from various phone lines connected to studios and control rooms at Voice of America headquarters, where Jason had worked as a longtime employee. In eight calls made over fifteen months, Jason threatened the use of firearms to kill Rep. Greene, her staff, and their families.
The charges in the indictment are merely allegations and every defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. The maximum penalty for influencing a federal official by threatening a family member and influencing a federal official by threat is ten years imprisonment. The maximum penalty for interstate communications with a threat to kidnap or injure is five years imprisonment. The maximum penalty for anonymous telecommunications harassment is two years imprisonment. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes. If convicted of any offense, a defendant’s sentence will be determined by the court based on the advisory U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
“You threaten a public official and you face the full force of the law crushing down on you,” interim U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro said, according to NBC News.
“There will be no mercy and no excuses,” she added.
US Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro has just announced that a longtime former Voice of America employee, Seth Jason, has been indicted for making eight calls over the last 15 months threatening to murder Rep. Majorie Taylor Greene, her staff, and their… pic.twitter.com/ZRhNLtgvAG
— Charlie Kirk (@charliekirk11) July 17, 2025
NBC News noted:
The alleged actions took place before Trump took office. The Voice of America, a broadcast outlet funded by the U.S. government but editorially independent, has been nearly dismantled since Trump returned to office, with hundreds of staff members terminated.
Lake announced mass terminations at the U.S. Agency for Global Media last month.
“USAGM now operates near the statutory minimum; lean and focused. This is a clear example of responsible government—cutting waste, restoring accountability, and delivering on the promise to put American taxpayers first,” Lake said.
“Today, we took decisive action to effectuate President Trump’s agenda to shrink the out-of-control federal bureaucracy,” she added.
The former Arizona gubernatorial candidate has eliminated approximately 1,400 positions, an 85% decrease in personnel.
