Man is accused of sending threat

January 31, 2008 | David Haldane

A Huntington Beach man was arraigned Wednesday on charges of sending an e-mail to Orange County
Supervisor John Moorlach threatening to kill him, his family and the four other supervisors. Steve Van Arroyo,
50, was arrested Monday after Moorlach discovered the e-mail, which had been sent over the weekend,
authorities said. Arroyo is charged with making criminal threats and threatening a public official, both felonies.
If convicted, he could face up to three years in prison. Susan Kang Schroeder, a spokeswoman for the Orange
County district attorney's office, declined to provide details of the message, which was sent Saturday after
Arroyo allegedly called the supervisor's office and asked for his e-mail address.

NEWS

FIVE-YEAR LOOK BACKS

January 31

2008

The District Attorneys office issued a press release announcing what the OC Registers
headline would state: H.B. man charged with threatening O.C. supervisor
Authorities said Steve Van Arroyo threatened Supervisor John Moorlach, his staff and
family. Salvador Hernandez would write the story, one that I thought was better left
out of the limelight. For those interested in a life in the public eye, here is a cautionary
tale. It would be picked up by the wire services and brief articles were printed in the LA
Times, NBC News and the Desert Sun.

A Huntington Beach man was charged Wednesday with threatening to kill Orange County
Supervisor John Moorlach, his family and staff.
Steve Van Arroyo, 50, was arrested Monday after authorities said he sent an e-mail
toMoorlach that threatened him and other members of the county Board of Supervisors, said
Susan Schroeder of the Orange County District Attorneys office.
Arroyo entered a not guilty plea in Orange County Superior Court to charges of making criminal
threats and threatening public officials. If convicted, he faces up to three years in prison.
He is currently being held in lieu of $50,000 bail.
Authorities said Arroyo contacted Moorlachs office Friday and introduced himself as Dusty.
Arroyo asked for Moorlachs email address, they said. The next day, the threatening email was
sent.
Schroeder would not specify what kind of threats Arroyo made, or what, if any, reason was given
for the threats.
We dont want to repeat the threats, she said.
According to a criminal complaint filed in court, the statements made were unequivocal,
unconditional, immediate, and specific.
The email also threatened members of Moorlachs staff, his family, and other members of the
Board of Supervisors, Schroeder said. The threat was specific, although the letter wasnt
expressed well, she said.
The threat was not very articulate, Schroeder said.
Moorlach discovered the email Saturday night and reported it to authorities Monday morning, he
said. He would not go into specific of what the email, which was about a page long, said, citing
the upcoming criminal case.
 Ive had bomb threats made to the office, but nothing of this nature, Moorlach said.
The county supervisor said he was used to being attacked in blogs, letters, and emails, but never
in a way where his safety was threatened.
It went to a level way beyond sharing an opinion, Moorlach said.
On Wednesday, Moorlach was shown a picture of Arroyo, but said he did not recognize Arroyo
from previous encounters. He did not say if his office had received other emails from Arroyo in
the past.
Arroyo has faced similar charges in the past. In 1999, he was charged with three counts of
making criminal threats. He received three years of probation.
Arroyo is scheduled to appear back in court Feb. 5 for a pre-trial hearing.
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