(OPINION) A Kansas man who claims God directed him to the nation’s capital is charged with threatening to kill President Joe Biden, whom he referred to as the Antichrist. On Tuesday, Scott Ryan Merryman called police in his hometown of Independence, telling them he was going to see the president, according to a Maryland arrest warrant obtained by the Daily Beast.
When contacted by an FBI agent Wednesday, Merryman allegedly said he planned to “lop off the head of the serpent in the heart of the nation.” That agent, who said Merryman later threatened to kill him too, reached out to the Secret Service. Scott R. Merryman, a construction contractor from Independence,
Kansas, is accused of threatening the President and a federal agent in a probable cause statement filed in the U.S. District of Maryland on Friday. Merryman is accused of making threats this week over several phone calls and posts made to his Facebook account.
A criminal complaint drafted by the U.S. Secret Service points to Jan. 25 as the day Merryman informed officers in Independence, Kansas, of a trip he was making to Washington, D.C. Over the course of this week, Merryman allegedly spoke with at least two Secret Service agents about his plans, telling one he was “fed up with the divisiveness of this country” and that he was being guided by God.
Court documents state that when specifically questioned on why he was heading to the White House, Merryman said that people were “fed up with the divisiveness in the country and to turn back to God or go to hell.”
He also made numerous comments about God, being guided by God, cloaked in the “blood of the lamb,” and armored by God. Special agents found a loaded magazine — containing three rounds of .45 ammunition — in Merryman’s possession, and a spotting scope in his backpack.
Merryman claimed God told him to bring the ammunition and offered no other explanation. He denied possessing a weapon and said the rounds belonged to a Ruger 1911, and he claimed to no longer have.
At some point during the course of the conversation, Merryman stated, “Well, I have a bullet with your name on it” and “I’m coming for you bi***, I’m coming to cut the head off the serpent in the heart of America.” From Jan. 25 through Jan. 27, authorities found that Merryman had posted a series of posts threatening the president on his Facebook page.
