A South Carolina inmate twice convicted of threatening U.S. presidents now faces federal charges for allegedly mailing death threats targeting President Donald Trump from behind bars—and investigators say he signed his full name to the letter.
Eric Anthony Rome Jr., 37, was indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of making threats against the President of the United States and depositing threatening communications in the mail. The two-count federal indictment, returned on February 19, 2026, stems from a disturbing letter Rome allegedly sent in January while incarcerated at Kirkland Correctional Institution in Columbia. He is currently serving a 12-year sentence for an armed robbery conviction out of Greenville County.
Prosecutors allege Rome mailed the threatening correspondence to the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews, a non-profit organization based in Chicago. The letter, dated January 6, 2026, contained explicit threats against multiple individuals, including the organization’s leadership, U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders, and President Trump. Investigators say the letter also included derogatory references to the Jewish community, Holocaust denial, and graphic threats of violence.
“Enjoy having Trump in office while you can because we are going to kill him too,” Rome allegedly wrote.
The correspondence, filled with profanity, misspellings, and grammatical errors, concluded with Rome’s full signature—a detail that significantly aided investigators. In the rambling letter, Rome claimed membership in the Aryan Brotherhood and warned, “These are guarantees!”
This marks the third time Rome has faced federal charges for threatening a sitting U.S. president. He was previously convicted of threatening President Barack Obama in 2015 and President Joe Biden in 2022, earning federal convictions for both incidents. In the 2015 case, Rome claimed he had been a member of the Aryan Nation since age 17 and said the group had offered him money to assassinate President Obama.
Rome’s threatening behavior has extended well beyond letters. In May 2014, he left a message with the Inspector General of the South Carolina Department of Corrections stating he planned to kill President Obama upon his release from prison. In June 2021, he left a voicemail with the United States Probation Office declaring his intent to escape and assassinate then-Vice President Kamala Harris. Two days later, he called the South Carolina Department of Corrections with another chilling message about President Biden.
Rome also sent letters to the U.S. Supreme Court and a federal courthouse in Portland, Oregon, falsely claiming they contained weapons-grade anthrax. In 2022, he sent a letter to federal judges in Columbia threatening, “We, the Aryan Brotherhood, are going to kill you both.”
The case was investigated jointly by the United States Secret Service, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the South Carolina Department of Corrections. Assistant U.S. Attorney Winston D. Holliday is prosecuting the case in the District of South Carolina’s Columbia Division.
Rome’s projected prison release date for his state armed robbery conviction is December 9, 2030. Upon completion of that sentence, he is scheduled to begin serving additional time for his previous federal convictions involving threats against presidents. If convicted on these new charges, Rome faces a maximum penalty of five years in federal prison on each count, along with fines of up to $250,000.
The grand jury returned a true bill, formally charging Rome on both counts. Threatening the president is a Class D felony under federal law, and the Secret Service investigates every credible threat regardless of whether the accused has the means to carry it out.
Rome’s pattern of threatening multiple presidents from inside prison walls underscores the challenges corrections officials face in monitoring inmate communications. The South Carolina Department of Corrections has not commented on what additional security measures, if any, will be implemented following this latest incident.
As with all federal indictments, the charges against Rome are allegations, and he is presumed innocent unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. However, his two prior convictions for similar offenses will likely factor heavily into any potential sentencing.
The case highlights the ongoing security challenges faced by law enforcement in protecting current and former U.S. presidents, even from individuals already behind bars. The Secret Service continues to work closely with federal and state partners to investigate all threats against protected individuals.