A Virginia man is being detained for allegedly threatening to kill Kennedy Center president Richard Grenell.
A federal magistrate judge ordered Scott Bolger to be held without bond on Tuesday after the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia announced he had been charged with “transmitting threats in interstate commerce and making false statements.”
Bolger “used Google Voice, which allows a user to text message others using a phone number other than the user’s primary phone number, to send a message to a federal employee,” the Department of Justice press release alleged without naming Grenell.
The “federal employee” Bolger threatened to kill was first identified as Grenell by Fox News.
“I am grateful to Pam Bondi, Kash Patel and Lindsey Halligan for finding this deranged individual and locking him up,” Grenell wrote on X. “His name is Scott Bolger.” (RELATED: Never Giving Up: The Kennedy Center Honors And American Identity)
I am grateful to Pam Bondi, Kash Patel and Lindsey Halligan for finding this deranged individual and locking him up.
His name is Scott Bolger. https://t.co/ZvUOkCoHCp
— Richard Grenell (@RichardGrenell) December 31, 2025
“Threats of violence are serious crimes with serious consequences,” U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia Lindsey Halligan said in a statement. “Those who target federal employees should know that we will investigate and prosecute these offenses to the fullest extent of the law.”
When federal officers arrived at Bolger’s residence to question him, Bolger allegedly gave the false name of “Brian Black,” according to the DOJ’s press release.
WASHINGTON, DC – AUGUST 13: President of the Kennedy Center Board of Trustees Richard Grenell (L) speaks with U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi during an event at the Kennedy Center on August 13, 2025 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
A court record, which also does not name Grenell, alleges that a federal employee received a text message stating, “Step on U Street and get a bullet put between your eyes, loyalist pig skin pussy[.]”
Bolger faces up to five years in prison, according to the DOJ.
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