Man faces court charged with threatening to kill MP Dan Bidois

A 29-year-old Takapuna man appeared in court on Tuesday charged with threatening to kill National MP Dan Bidois.

According to RNZ, the man is accused of sending Bidois a threatening message through social media. Bidois is the MP for Northcote, an electorate on Auckland's North Shore. The threat was reportedly made in November 2025.

Detective Senior Sergeant Mike Williams said police began looking into the threat in December. The charge — threatening to kill — carries a maximum penalty of seven years in prison if the person is convicted.

This is not the only recent case of someone being charged over threats to an MP. Earlier this month, police arrested a 19-year-old Gisborne man over a series of death threats against a Member of Parliament. That man was charged with threatening to kill and causing harm through a digital communication, and was arrested on 8 October (New Zealand Police).

Threats against National MPs have led to charges before. In May 2021, a man was arrested over threats to Simeon Brown, the MP for Pakuranga (New Zealand Police). A 36-year-old man later admitted threatening to kill members of the public and police after a five-hour standoff linked to that case. None of those earlier cases are connected to the Bidois charge.

One thing that stands out is the time gap. The threat was allegedly made in November 2025, the police investigation began the next month, and the accused appeared in court on 11 August 2026 — about nine months after the alleged offence. Police have not said publicly why it took that long. It is not clear whether the delay was due to the difficulty of tracing a social media message, court delays, or something else.

When a credible threat against an MP is identified, security reviews and sometimes temporary changes to electorate offices follow. Parliamentary Service gives security advice to MPs, and police are involved when charges are laid. MPs usually do not comment on threat cases while they are before the court. Bidois has not spoken about the matter publicly.

The broader context here is that threats against MPs are not new in New Zealand, but they appear to be happening more often — and more of them involve social media. The Gisborne case this month involved the same kind of charges. It is not yet clear whether the Bidois case will involve additional charges beyond threatening to kill.

The maximum sentence for threatening to kill is seven years, no matter who the target is. But cases involving MPs tend to attract more public attention, and judges have in the past taken into account that the victim is a public office-holder. Whether that happens in this case would depend on what the Crown argues at sentencing, if there is a conviction.

The accused's next court appearance has not been reported. The matter is still before the court, and the accused is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.