Mental tests ordered for man accused in Iowa senator threats

Robert Simet is shown in an undated photo provided by the Pottawattamie County (Iowa) Sheriff's Office. A psychiatric evaluation has been ordered for Simet, accused of threatening Republican U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa. U.S. Magistrate Judge Helen Adams on Tuesday, July 18, 2017, ordered the transfer of Simet from Pottawattamie County Jail in Council Bluffs, Iowa, to the Douglas County Jail in Omaha, where he'll be held while undergoing an evaluation. (Pottawattamie County (Iowa) Sheriff's Office via AP)

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa – A psychiatric evaluation has been ordered for a Nebraska man accused of threatening Republican U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Helen Adams on Tuesday ordered the transfer of 64-year-old Robert Simet from Pottawattamie County Jail in Council Bluffs, Iowa, to the Douglas County Jail in Omaha, where he'll be held while undergoing an evaluation.

An arrest affidavit says employees of a motorcycle shop in Pacific Junction, Iowa, told an FBI agent that Simet had been there July 5. During that visit, Simet made several statements about Ernst, including that he believes she is a member of the Islamic State group and that he "could kill" her during a July 10 event at the motorcycle shop.

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Simet, of Omaha, is charged with threatening a U.S. official.