DENVER — A man from Colorado, accused of repeatedly threatening to kill election officials, judges, and federal agents, is set to plead guilty in federal court on Wednesday.
Teak Ty Brockbank, 45, of Cortez, Colorado, has been in custody since his arrest on August 23. He initially pleaded not guilty to one count of making interstate threats, but his lawyer recently notified the court that Brockbank intends to change his plea. In federal court, “guilty” is the only other option available for such a change.
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Brockbank told investigators that he wasn’t a “vigilante” and that his threatening posts were an attempt to “wake people up,” according to a detention motion.
Authorities say Brockbank’s threats, which began in late 2021, targeted Colorado Secretary of State Jena Griswold, Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs (formerly the Secretary of State), and other public officials. Investigators say he believed violence against these individuals was necessary.
In one post from August 2022, Brockbank allegedly referred to Griswold and Hobbs, writing: “Once those people start getting put to death, the rest will melt like snowflakes and turn on each other,” according to court documents.
The investigation into Brockbank began after Griswold’s office alerted federal authorities to threatening posts made on Gab and Rumble, platforms known for hosting far-right content.
Prosecutors also revealed that Brockbank had previously threatened a state judge overseeing his probation following his fourth DUI conviction. He allegedly posted that he would use his rifle to “put a bullet” in the judge’s head, calling him a “Nazi.”
Brockbank’s threats extended to federal agents as well. In July 2022, he allegedly posted that he would shoot any federal agent who came to his home without warning. During his arrest in August, authorities found six firearms in his home, including a loaded gun near his front door, despite Brockbank being legally prohibited from possessing firearms due to a prior felony conviction.
Although Brockbank was charged with threats made between September 2021 and August 2022, prosecutors say he has continued to make threats since then. In December 2023, after Colorado’s Supreme Court removed Donald Trump from the state’s presidential primary ballot, Brockbank allegedly told his stepfather that he was adding the four judges who ruled in favor of the decision to “my list.”
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Prosecutors also say Brockbank continued threatening Griswold in July, following her involvement in an investigation of former Mesa County Clerk Tina Peters. Peters, who was sentenced to nearly nine years in prison for her role in a 2021 election data breach, has been a vocal proponent of unfounded claims that the 2020 election was rigged.
Brockbank’s case is being handled by the Justice Department’s Election Threats Task Force, established to protect election workers facing increased threats since the 2020 election.
In 2022, the task force secured its first guilty plea when a Nebraska man admitted to making death threats against Griswold.