An Illinois man was charged on Monday with sending threatening letters to at least four U.S. lawmakers, with the mailings containing a white granular powder that did not have any hazardous substances, Reuters reported. The FBI said in a court filing that the man, Matthew G. Unglesbee, admitted to sending the letters, telling agents he sent them after reading stories about other suspicious mailings sent to state election officials and lawmakers' offices ahead of the November 3 midterm elections, and that he did not send the earlier letters.
Source: Reuters — Illinois man charged with sending threatening letters to US lawmakers, Oct. 26, 2026
Unglesbee has been charged with mailing four letters containing a white granular substance to members of Congress, in envelopes that contained his name and home address, NBC News reported. Three letters contained handwritten notes reading "HA HA," while a fourth included the note "HAH enjoy the gift." He faces two charges: false information and hoaxes, and mailing threatening communications, and was due to make an initial court appearance on Monday afternoon.
In an interview with FBI personnel at his home on Sunday, Unglesbee allegedly admitted that he mailed the four letters after hearing about other letters mailed earlier in the month, and admitted he knew people would perceive the letters as dangerous, NBC News reported. He said the granular substance was salt, which he said "kind of looks like" anthrax. The FBI is separately investigating letters containing suspicious substances that were sent to members of Congress and elections officials in recent weeks.
A lawyer for Unglesbee could not immediately be identified, Reuters reported. The charges are allegations, and Unglesbee is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.