Man Threatened LoBiondo's Office With A 'Bloodbath': Authorities

Joseph Brodie first made contact with Rep. Frank LoBiondo’s office in the spring of last year, as he sought with his medical treatment. As Brodie became frustrated with the lack of help he felt he was receiving from the Congressman’s office, he became increasingly angrier, ultimately telling LoBiondo’s chief of staff, “You’re a Dead Man,” and telling his fiancée there would be a “bloodbath,” according to authorities.

Now Brodie, 39, of Millville, is on his way to prison after a jury found he threatened to kill LoBiondo (R-2) and members of his staff. Brodie has been convicted of two counts of making threats to officials, officers and employees of the United States, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.

Specifically, Brodie threatened to murder LoBiondo, his chief of staff, his veterans affairs liaison, and all of the staff of the Mays Landing office, Carpentio said. He was also convicted of threatening LoBiondo’s chief of staff in a separate count. The jury deliberated for approximately six hours before returning the verdict following a seven-day trial, Carpenito said.

Brodie had been seeking help from the retiring Congressman’s office for medical care and treatment that Brodie was receiving from the Veterans Administration, according to documents filed in the case and statements made in court.

Over the course of the next few months, Brodie spoke and corresponded with the congressman’s Veterans Affairs Liaison and a caseworker, both of whom assisted him with appointments and meetings regarding his medical care, according to authorities.

On Sept. 19, 2017, Brodie asked LoBiondo’s chief of staff to arrange a meeting with the congressman, but the chief of staff refused. Brodie then became angry, eventually threatening to kill the chief of staff and calling him, “a dead man,” Carpenito said.

About an hour and a half later, Brodie sent a threatening email to both the congressman’s veterans’ affairs liaison and the caseworker. In the email, he also threatened the lives of the congressman and his staff in the Mays Landing Office, according to authorities. In this email, Brodie said he wanted to meet the congressman “face to face,” and he pointed out “how easy” it was to find the congressman’s Mays Landing Office, according to Carpenito.

Brodie also attached a terrain map of the area, with the area around the congressman’s office enlarged for detail and a red pinpoint location marker on the office, authorities said. Writing about the map, Brodie said, “[i]t even shows the environment and surrounding terrain, parking lots, wooded areas, etc., (like the kind a highly trained Combat Infantryman would use)…”

On the same day, authorities said Brodie sent text messages to his fiancée stating: “I threaten the life of a Congressman’s Chief of Staff. I’m pretty sure the Secret Service are going to investigate.” He also wrote that he was “prepared” for any law enforcement officers who might respond to his home.

“I’ll give them a chance to leave,” he wrote. “If not, it’ll be First Blood Part II Type S--- (if you never saw that Rambo movie).” Brodie also wrote, “I won’t surrender. It’s not in me.”

The same day, Brodie spoke to his fiancée on the phone and told her that he was going to an address in New Jersey, that he had GPS coordinates in his car, and that he was going to kill LoBiondo’s chief of staff. He said there was going to be a “bloodbath,” authorities said.

One week later, in a statement recorded by the FBI, Brodie confessed to having made the phone threat to the chief of staff on Sept. 19, 2017, and to having sent the email threat on Sept. 19, 2017, Carpenito said.

The evidence showed that at the time Brodie made these threats, Brodie owned several firearms and a large amount of ammunition at his home, according to authorities.

Brodie now faces a maximum potential penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense. Sentencing will be scheduled at a later date.

Patch file photo of Rep. Frank LoBiondo