Shayla Addison, a 28-year-old resident of Indianapolis, has been charged with two counts of Influencing a Federal Official by Threat. The charges stem from an incident on January 15, 2025, when Addison allegedly sent multiple threatening messages to a member of the United States House of Representatives.
According to court documents, Addison began sending text messages at approximately 8:53 a.m. to the campaign phone number of the representative, referred to as Victim 1. The texts included explicit threats such as “Come outside b**** we’ll kill you” and “Tread lightly,” along with other similar statements.
Shortly after the initial texts, Addison reportedly sent additional threats to Victim 1’s campaign email address. One message stated, “We will kill you and blow that whole building up b**** come outside.”
Addison is also accused of posting threatening comments on Victim 1’s Instagram account later that day. These posts included: “Shut up h** I’ll kill you” and “I hope you got mace… cause you gone need it.”
Authorities allege that these communications were intended as retaliation against Victim 1 for actions taken in their official capacity.
The investigation was conducted by the FBI and United States Capitol Police. If convicted, Addison could face up to ten years in federal prison.
U.S. Attorney Wheeler expressed appreciation for Assistant U.S. Attorney Kate Olivier’s work on the prosecution of this case.
