Court Battles

Plea deal reached for man charged with threatening to torture Supreme Court justices

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by Zach Schonfeld - 04/07/26 7:33 PM ET

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by Zach Schonfeld - 04/07/26 7:33 PM ET

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An Alaska man charged with threatening to torture and assassinate six Supreme Court justices and some of their family members has reached a plea deal, according to a new court filing on Tuesday.

Panos Anastasiou, 77, had pleaded not guilty when he was first charged in 2024. On Tuesday, he filed a notice that he intends to change it “pursuant to a written plea agreement.”

Federal prosecutors accuse Anastasiou of submitting hundreds of messages to the Supreme Court online, many of which allegedly contained violent threats.

Some were purportedly sent following the high court’s decision that then-former President Trump was entitled to broad criminal immunity.

Less than two hours later, Anastasiou allegedly threatened to torture and execute six unnamed justices by “assassination.” He continued to send threats of drowning, shooting, strangling and lynching, the charging documents state. Some also allegedly included threats against some family members.

One allegedly threatened a justice by “providing the rope” to “hang … from an Oak tree.”

The prosecution came amid the backdrop of a sharp rise in threats against judges and Supreme Court justices in recent years, making security a prime concern for the judiciary.

In the first half of this fiscal year, there have already been 256 threats against judges, according to U.S. Marshals Service data.

Anastasiou faces 26 charges in total, spanning threats against a federal judge, making threats in interstate commerce, stalking and possessing a firearm while a felon. Law enforcement said they found him with a Beretta 92 when arrested.

The new filing does not indicate what charges Anastasiou plans to plead guilty to or any other details of the terms of his agreement with the government.

A spokesperson for the U.S. attorney’s office for the District of Alaska, which is prosecuting the case, and Anastasiou’s public defender declined to provide a copy when reached for comment.

Any plea deal must be approved by the judge overseeing the case. U.S. District Judge Aaron Peterson, a Trump appointee, is assigned to it, though Anastasiou has consented to his plea being taken by a magistrate judge.

The case is part of a broader set of criminal prosecutions against defendants accused of threatening the Supreme Court justices.

Last year, a defendant pleaded guilty to attempting to assassinate Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh at his home in 2022. The defendant’s eight-year sentence sparked outcry from the Justice Department, which had requested far greater punishment. It is due to file its written arguments to the appeals court by next week.

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