The FBI has arrested an Oklahoma City man accused of mailing hundreds of letters filled with white powder to public officials, election offices and media outlets across the country ahead of both the 2024 and 2026 elections.
Robin Patrick Martin was taken into custody early Monday and charged with conveying a hoax and mailing threatening communications, according to the Justice Department. He faces up to 15 years in prison if convicted on both counts and was scheduled to make his initial appearance in federal court in Oklahoma City on Tuesday.
Fox News Digital first reported the arrest, citing a federal law enforcement source who said the letters had been sent to more than 100 locations, including multiple secretary of state and election offices.
According to charging documents unsealed Tuesday, Martin allegedly sent more than 700 envelopes to targets on both sides of the aisle. Recipients included election officials, members of Congress, pollsters, news organizations and federal law enforcement.
The mailings purportedly came from a group calling itself the “United States Traitor Elimination Army,” which the letters described as a “top-secret military organization with members all around the country,” according to court documents.
While the content of the letters varied, authorities said they all carried a common warning: “YOU WILL BE ARRESTED FOR TREASON!! OR WORSE!!”
The affidavit states the 2026 letters “all pertained to the upcoming 2026 national elections.”
Investigators tied the new wave of mailings to an earlier one. Ahead of the 2024 election, an envelope addressed to the Oklahoma State Election Board allegedly carried the handwritten message, “stay on the right side of history your life might depend on it!” Federal prosecutors say handwriting analysis matched that message to the latest batch of letters.
The powder in the envelopes was determined to be either yeast or flour, though the FBI has not yet intercepted or fully tested every letter.
The scare still caused real disruption. Offices in Louisiana and Oklahoma were evacuated, and election officials in states ranging from Idaho to Florida reported receiving letters or having them intercepted by the U.S. Postal Service.
In October, the FBI announced it was investigating letters containing “suspicious substances” mailed to congressional and election offices nationwide, warning recipients to treat them as “potentially hazardous.” Senior Capitol Hill staff were also alerted by email that such letters had been sent to multiple congressional offices.
The Oklahoma State Election Board received one of the envelopes this fall. The Oklahoma Highway Patrol investigated and assured residents the incident would not affect the state’s ability to conduct the election.
Through that investigation, the FBI determined that more than 700 mailings appeared to be linked to the same sender.
The case was led by the FBI’s Oklahoma City field office, the FBI Criminal Division, U.S. Capitol Police and the Oklahoma City Police Department.
Martin’s arrest is not the first in the recent string of white powder threats. Last month, an Illinois man was arrested for allegedly sending similar letters to four members of Congress from that state.
The arrest comes on Election Day, as voters head to the polls in midterm contests that will decide control of the House and Senate.
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