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KAYSVILLE — A Kaysville man is facing federal charges after U.S. Capitol Police said he made threatening calls to members of Congress, claiming frustration with "Democrats" and "liberals" mistreating President Donald Trump.
Scott Brian Haven was arrested Tuesday morning in Kaysville on charges unsealed in U.S. District Court with one count of interstate transmission of threats to injure. If convicted, he could spend up to five years in prison.
Haven called the office of one unidentified U.S. senator at least nine times between May 2018 and May 2019, according to charging documents, and made threats toward the senator, Democrat leadership in Congress, and "liberals."
In the calls, Haven mentioned various methods of violence, including shooting, hanging and decapitation, the charges say.
Haven made similar calls to the offices of several other unnamed U.S. senators and representatives during the same time period, in which he threatened "use his Second Amendment right" to shoot the politicians, according to charging documents.
In one call to the office of congressman, police said, Haven claimed to be standing behind the representative in his office and said he was going to shoot the representative in the head.
FBI agents interviewed Haven at his home in Kaysville in November 2018, after investigators traced threatening calls back to Haven that had been placed to the first senator's office.
Haven told the agents he made the calls "during periods of frustration with the way Democrats were treating President Trump," according to charging documents, but said his comments were "just meaningless threats that were made out of frustration."
Haven told the FBI agents in November that he would stop calling members of Congress, investigators said, but the charges allege he went on to make at least four more threats against the senator and other members of Congress.
In the last call, made on May 28 to the first senator's office, Haven threatened to "come up here and blow some (expletive) heads off," according to charging documents.
At his first court appearance Wednesday afternoon, Magistrate Judge Paul M. Warner found Haven to be a danger to the community and ordered him detained pending resolution of the case.
His next court hearing is June 13 in Salt Lake City.
