Oroville man pleads guilty to mailing threats

SACRAMENTO — Kao Xiong apparently had a thing for letter writing, mailing out more than 150 letters since January 2017 to President Donald Trump, former presidents, an FBI agent, Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport and a number of individuals.

The letters from Xiong, a 34year-old Oroville man, contained a number of death threats, bomb threats and extortion demands, as well as references to a group he called the ‘Unstoppable Force,’” federal court records say.

“Pipe Bomb, Everyone is going to die,” one letter sent to DFW offices in Texas read, according to court records.

That letter and dozens of others, some containing white powder later determined to be flour, prompted “expenditure of significant taxpayer dollars” and hazardous materials response by officials trained in handling weapons of mass destruction, according to a criminal complaint filed under seal against Xiong in December 2017.

On Thursday, Xiong appeared in a federal courtroom in Sacramento and pleaded guilty to a single count of using the mail to convey a malicious threat about an explosive device, an offense that carries a maximum prison term of 10 years. There is no evidence that Xiong ever built any device, and he told investigators he had no access to explosives training or any intent to hurt anyone. He was allowed Thursday to remain out of custody pending sentencing in March under a plea agreement.