A 23-year-old Sandy Springs man faces up to five years in federal prison after allegedly posting an online threat to kill the husband of former Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard.

Nolan Ezra Goldklang was charged by criminal complaint on Aug. 5 with sending an interstate communication containing a threat to kill Abraham Williams, Gabbard's husband, U.S. Attorney Ken Sorenson of the District of Hawaii announced.

Goldklang moved from Sandy Springs to Kapolei, on Oahu, in May. On July 21, he allegedly used a public computer at the Kapolei Public Library to post a threat against Williams, according to the Honolulu Star-Advertiser. The post read: "I'm going to murder Abraham Williams when he gets back to Oahu. I will slam his bloody face on the pavement until his skull cracks."

His family contacted the FBI the next day, July 22, reporting that Goldklang was "obsessed" with Gabbard and alerting agents to the threat. His parents told investigators he had been diagnosed with schizophrenia during an involuntary commitment to a mental institution and had escaped the facility.

FBI agents confronted Goldklang at the same library on July 24. He voluntarily agreed to an interview, which was audio recorded. When shown a printed copy of the threat, he allegedly confirmed he wrote it, signed the printout and told agents he "really hated Williams," the Star-Advertiser reported.

Goldklang allegedly told agents he used the word "murder" rather than "fight" because he believed it would disrupt the X algorithm more effectively, and that he did not actually intend to kill Williams. He also claimed Williams had been using "psychic communications" to telepathically threaten him.

He told investigators he believed he and Gabbard "would be together no later than Thursday, October 1, 2026."

Assistant U.S. Attorney Randolph J. St. Clair argued in a detention motion filed Aug. 10 that Goldklang poses a risk to the community, especially people surrounding Gabbard. Prosecutors said Goldklang told investigators he planned to attend a public meeting to shake the hand of Gabbard's father, a local politician in Hawaii, and followed through on that plan.

FBI agents arrested Goldklang on Aug. 8 on Oahu. He made his initial appearance in U.S. District Court on Monday, Aug. 10. If convicted, he faces up to five years in prison, a $250,000 fine and a term of supervised release.

Goldklang is presumed innocent. No statement from his defense attorney was available. A detention hearing is scheduled for Thursday, Aug. 13, in U.S. District Court in Hawaii.