Mass. man charged with threatening FBI director’s girlfriend

Crime

The email said the sender would be “happy” when the face of the FBI director’s girlfriend is “canoed by an assault rifle,” court documents show.

Alexis Wilkins with Kash Patel as he is sworn in as FBI director at the White House on Feb. 21, 2025. Kenny Holston/The New York Times

A Cambridge man has been charged with sending a threatening email to the girlfriend of FBI Director Kash Patel, according to court records unsealed Thursday.

Alden Welch Ruml, 26, was arrested March 13 and charged by federal prosecutors in Boston with making threats in interstate commerce.

Investigators allege Ruml sent the email on or around Feb. 28 after becoming upset over a news article about Alexis Wilkins, Patel’s girlfriend, according to a newly unsealed search warrant application.

The article discussed FBI resources being used to provide security for Wilkins, a country music singer, as well as her and Patel’s conservative political views and ties to the “Make America Great Again” movement, investigators said.

Wilkins reported the message to law enforcement the same day, according to the warrant application.

The email, sent with the subject line “Question,” said Ruml would be “happy” when Wilkins’ face is “canoed by an assault rifle,” court documents revealed.

“Watch your back,” the email concluded.

According to an FBI affidavit, Wilkins was in Arizona when she received the message and said it left her “frightened,” prompting changes to upcoming travel plans.

Authorities later identified Ruml as the sender, and when interviewed by agents at his workplace in Cambridge, he said he had been “upset” by the news article but denied intending to harm anyone, the affidavit stated.

Ruml pleaded not guilty at a court hearing following his arrest. If convicted, he faces up to five years in prison, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Massachusetts.

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