North Dakota man federally charged with making threats in email referencing Minnesota lawmaker shootings

A North Dakota man accused of threatening a United States official in an email that referenced the attack against two Minnesota lawmakers has been federally charged, according to a criminal complaint.

Charles Dalzell, 46, was taken into custody Monday and later charged in the U.S. District Court for the District of North Dakota with making interstate threats and threatening a federal official. He did not have an attorney listed Tuesday afternoon.

According to the court filing, FBI agents reviewed an email allegedly sent by Dalzell on Sunday to someone within the U.S. Attorney’s Office in North Dakota identified only as “J.P.” mentioning the fatal shootings of Minnesota House DFL leader Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, that also injured state Sen. John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette, in their homes early Saturday.

“Now I’m going to be honest with you I don’t want this situation to end up like Minnesota over the weekend, do you,” Dalzell allegedly wrote. “I’m trying to get all of you to actually follow the law, not ignore me, not lie to me, not mislead me and purposely waist my time I don’t have.”

Dalzell claimed he had asked federally elected officials for assistance in “legal issues” and was ignored. He further claimed he was owed money for a court victory and police attempted to silence him.

“I don’t know the specifics in this Minnesota case but a representative and a lawmaker were shot and one of them is dead and all of you mentioned above are basically avoiding your responsibility and that is creating some bad situations.”

He went on to name a specific official and that the issue “better get fixed Monday morning which is tomorrow because I want to avoid anymore problems and don’t want North Dakota to end up like Minnesota and no that is not a threat,” the email continued.

The complaint states Dalzell mentioned two public officials and a judge by name as examples of people not “effectively performing their duties.”

Investigators in the complaint noted Dalzell sent an email with the same address to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in North Dakota in February 2024 describing an ongoing property dispute that’s led him to be “on the very very edge of flipping the f— out" and headed to a “word that starts with a ‘V’ and ends with a ‘T’ and kinda sounds like violin” if he doesn’t receive help.

Investigators said they followed up with Dalzell following the February message and told him the notes were “borderline threatening.” Dalzell dismissed the notion and “if he wanted to go shoot a place up he would not advertise it.”

The U.S. Attorney’s Office in North Dakota declined to comment on the matter other than Dalzell is scheduled to appear in court Wednesday afternoon.