18 U.S.C. § 877 – Mailing Threatening Communications From a Foreign Country
This provision covers threatening or extortionate communications mailed from outside the United States and delivered domestically.
What the statute targets.
Section 877 extends federal criminal liability to threatening or extortion-related communications mailed from a foreign country when those communications are ultimately delivered to a recipient within the United States through the U.S. Postal Service.
The offense is complete once the foreign mailing results in delivery inside the United States. The sender does not need to be physically present in the U.S.
Covered conduct.
The statute criminalizes mailing communications from abroad that contain:
- Demands for ransom or reward for the release of a kidnapped person
- Threats to kidnap any person, with intent to extort
- Threats to injure the person of the addressee or another
- Threats to injure property or reputation, or to accuse someone of a crime, made with intent to extort
Penalties.
- Up to 20 years for ransom demands or extortionate kidnapping threats
- Up to 5 years for non-extortion threats to kidnap or injure a person
- Up to 2 years for extortionate threats to property, reputation, or accusations of crime
Why this statute matters.
Section 877 closes a jurisdictional gap by allowing federal prosecution even when the threatening communication originates outside the United States, so long as it is routed into the U.S. mail system and delivered domestically.
If you are under investigation or facing charges involving interstate or international threat communications, call (314) 900-HELP or contact our federal criminal defense attorneys to discuss your options.
