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A California man was arrested on Thursday after allegedly threatening to open fire at several businesses in Cambridge and Somerville, according to the United States Attorney’s Office.

Federal officials allege that Daniel Nguyen, 34, threatened to target two companies with an AK-47 assault-style rifle and a Glock handgun. He faces one charge of transmitting threats in interstate commerce.

Nguyen allegedly left five threatening voicemails to the Cambridge and Somerville companies in January and February of 2024. He also sent threatening and racist emails to individuals in Nevada and California, officials said.

According to an affidavit from FBI Agent Casey Biagiotti, Nguyen left four threatening voicemails on Jan. 12 and 13 at two different companies. In the calls, which were anonymously placed, Ngyuen claimed that each company had cheated him out of money.

Biagiotti, who led the case, wrote that he worked with employees to track down the source of the threats.

“The employee expressed fear and concern for their life, as well as the lives of the other Company 1 employees,” Biagiotti wrote. “As a result of these voicemails, the building was evacuated and security was increased on company grounds.”

Then, a month later, one of the companies received another threatening call.

“In the voicemail, the caller stated, ‘I have an AK-47 in my possession and I’m gonna go over to Company 1 and shoot up the whole fucking office. I’ve got an AK-47 in my hand,’” Biagoitti wrote.

Nguyen faces a sentence of up to five years in prison, with up to three years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000. His case is set to be prosecuted by Lauren A. Maynard, assistant U.S. Attorney of the Major Crimes Unit.

—Staff writer Sally E. Edwards can be reached at sally.edwards@thecrimson.com. Follow her on X @sallyedwards04 or on Threads @sally_edwards06.

—Staff writer Asher J. Montgomery can be reached at asher.montgomery@thecrimson.com. Follow her on X @asherjmont or on Threads @asher_montgomery.