'Don't ever **** with a Russian': Traffic stop leads to threatening letter toward Allen County officials
Oct 01, 2024
FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WANE) -- It started with a traffic stop July 18 that resulted in a man receiving a citation for improper passing on the right.
On Aug. 9, Allen County officials then received a threatening letter addressed to the officer, prosecutor and judge involved in the traffic stop and ticket.
Now, the Fort Wayne man who received the ticket, identified as 35-year-old Yuriy M. Ivanov, is accused of authoring the letter and faces two felony intimidation charges.
According to Allen Superior Court documents, the letter began with the following statement: "To the prosecutor and judge in Fort Wayne who think [they] can outsmart a Russian and [believe] they are better than the Russians. From Yuriv, a Russian you don't want to [expletive] with."
The body of the letter consisted of several threats toward the aforementioned public officials, which included a reference to a style of execution called a "blood eagle" and a warning to "don't ever [expletive] with a Russian," according to court documents
The letter also said the public officials were part of a "fraudulent system" and the person who penned the letter did nothing wrong.
"I am not guilty of anything and I am challenging the ticket and your false power of justice," part of the letter read.
Ivanov faces two intimidation charges. One charge is a Level 5 felony for threatening a public official, and the other is a Level 6 felony.
An initial hearing in court has not yet been scheduled.