DETROIT - An Indiana man will spend 14 months in prison for sending a death threat to a Michigan election worker in November 2020.

Andrew Nickels, 38 from Carmel, was sentenced July 9 in federal district court. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, Nickels called the clerk of a Michigan municipality on Nov. 10, 2020 and left a voicemail threatening to kill the official.

“The Justice Department has no tolerance for violent threats against election workers, officials, and volunteers, and as this case demonstrates, we will aggressively investigate and prosecute such threats to the fullest extent of the law,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland in a statement. “We will continue to defend the right to vote and to defend the safety of the public servants who make voting possible.”

Nickels pleaded guilty Feb. 27 to one count of making a threatening interstate communication.

Court documents show Nickels left a voicemail telling the official “[Y]ou frauded out America of a real election” and “you’re gonna pay for it.” He also described how “ten million plus patriots will surround you when you least expect it.”

Nickels then continued to say: “[W]e’ll [expletive] kill you…[Y]ou will [expletive] pay for your [expletive] lying ass remarks … We will [expletive] take you out. [Expletive] your family, [expletive] your life, and you deserve a [expletive] throat to the knife … Watch your [expletive] back … watch your [expletive] back.”

U.S. Attorney Dawn N. Ison for the Eastern District of Michigan said the sentence should send a message that anyone who “seeks to jeopardize the fair and free administration of our elections” will be held accountable.

“Threats such as the ones that Nickels made undermine our democracy by making elections workers fearful for their lives and for the safety of their families—just for doing their jobs,” Ison said.

The case against Nickels is part of the Justice Department’s Election Threats Task Force that was launched in June 2021. The task force was created to address threats of violence and ensure all election workers are able to do their jobs without facing intimidation, according to the justice department.

The FBI Detroit Field Office investigated the case.