(WWJ) A 48-year-old man from Hawaii has been arrested, accused of emailing threats to shoot up the Michigan State Capitol and kill Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, and calling the FBI on himself.
U.S. Attorney Ken Sorenson announced Thursday that Ronald Saville of Honolulu was charged by criminal complaint on June 1, 2026, with sending interstate communications containing threats.
Saville was found and arrested on June 1 in Abilene, Texas.
Following an initial appearance in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, a judge ordered Saville detained pending his transportation back to the District of Hawaii to face the charges.
According to court documents, the threat began on May 9 of this year, when Saville allegedly emailed the Michigan State Police.
Identifying himself by name and referencing the state capitol in Lansing, Saville wrote that he was "going to walk in with a gun at A.R. 15 and open fire and kill as many people as possible. I mean what I say I’m not a joke."
A short time later, Saville allegedly sent a second email directly to Gov. Whitmer, stating: “just to let you know on Tuesday second, Lancy (sic), Michigan is never gonna be the same again going to walk into the state capital shoot it up and kill as many people as possible than that I’m coming for you[.]”
Three days later, on May 12, Saville allegedly called the FBI directly, telling an agent he wanted to kill Gov. Whitmer because of her political affiliation.
The FBI said Saville then confessed to conducting online research to plan a trip to Michigan to carry out the attack and stated that he still intended to go through with it.
Court records show this is not Saville's first time facing federal charges for violent threats. He has two prior federal convictions in the District of Hawaii:
- 2006: Convicted of making threats toward former U.S. President George W. Bush.
- 2012: Convicted of making threats toward former U.S. District Judge Susan Oki Mollway.
If convicted as charged in this latest case, Saville faces up to five years in prison per count, a fine of up to $250,000, and a period of supervised release.
The FBI is leading the ongoing investigation.
Officials say Ronald Saville called the FBI on himself
Officials say Ronald Saville called the FBI on himself
