Maryland man pleads guilty to threatening to kill U.S. Rep.

BALTIMORE – A Maryland man has pleaded guilty to threatening to kill a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, the Justice Department announced Friday.

Darryl Albert Varnum, 43, admitted to leaving a threatening voice message at the Florida office of a lawmaker because the House member supported legislation he opposed, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Baltimore. The legislator wasn’t identified by authorities.

The Westminster man was indicted in July 2019. Shortly after his arrest, a federal magistrate ordered that Varnum complete a 28-day inpatient program at a drug and alcohol rehabilitation centre in Sykesville and return to the court when he completed the program.

He faces a maximum sentence of five years in federal prison, the U.S. Attorney’s statement said.