ICE director slams 'disgusting, completely unhinged' posts by Ohio man who allegedly threatened to kill agents
ICE's acting director is speaking out against an Ohio man who is facing federal charges for making "multiple threats online to shoot and kill ICE officers," calling his alleged posts "disgusting and completely unhinged."
Anthony Kelly, 38, of Cincinnati, wrote "#RevolutionIsTheSolution #DestroyICE they're rabid dogs that need to be put down. Including #KristiNoem" in one of his alleged social media posts, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement announced Tuesday.
"Let me be crystal clear: Threatening to kill a federal officer is not protest — it's terrorism," acting ICE Director Todd Lyons said in a statement. "Anthony Kelly's violent threats, while disgusting and completely unhinged, are a symptom of a larger problem: Politicians are trying to turn our law enforcement officials into targets by scaring their constituents and whipping them into a frenzy in a fact-free vacuum.
"This is what happens when anti-ICE activists don't realize or care that we're out there arresting rapists, murderers and child molesters who are in this country illegally. Enough is enough. Anyone who targets ICE personnel will be met with swift, unrelenting justice," he added.
MAN BUSTED WITH ANTI-GOVERNMENT, ANTI-TRUMP DOCUMENTS AFTER TEXAS ICE AMBUSH SUSPECT PHONE CALL, FEDS SAY
ICE said its Homeland Security Investigations and the FBI arrested Kelly on July 19. He was federally charged with threatening to assault, kidnap or murder a United States official, as well as transmitting communications containing threats to kidnap or injure another person.
"Law enforcement became aware of a social media user going by the name of 'Slab' after he allegedly made multiple social media posts calling for the killing of ICE officers and detailing his acquisition of firearms to carry out that threat," ICE added. "After an investigation, the user making these posts was identified as Kelly, who lives in the Cincinnati area."
MORE DETAILS REVEALED ON SUSPECTS IN INDEPENDENCE DAY ICE ATTACK IN TEXAS
The agency said in one post, Kelly allegedly wrote "Why even bother with these d--- courts anymore. #Gestapedos don't deserve anything but the smoke coming for them anyway."
"You come here for me, you're getting shot. And I'm not looking to disable […] I'm shooting for the kill. I won't give a **** about your names, who you are, or anything else," he reportedly said in another.
Kelly now remains in custody pending federal court proceedings.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
"Calling for violence against federal law enforcement is not protected by the First Amendment," HSI Detroit acting Special Agent in Charge Jared Murphey said. "At great personal risk, ICE agents and officers faithfully enforce laws passed by our representatives in Congress. If members of the public disagree with our nation's laws, they need to write their representatives, not threaten violence against those charged with carrying out the law."
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
21 minutes ago
- Yahoo
As temperatures soar, IMPD reminds parents to not leave kids in car
Two weeks ago, Indianapolis Metro Police officers were dispatched to 38th and Moeller Road to rescue a child from a hot car. Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
21 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Tornado Cash investor slams prosecutors eyeing ‘unprecedented' new charges
Federal prosecutors could charge executives at crypto venture firm Dragonfly Capital in connection with its 2020 investment in Tornado Cash developer Peppersec Inc, an assistant US attorney reportedly said Friday. That prompted a swift rebuke from one of the firm's managing partners, who said the company stood by its investment and called the prospect 'outrageous.' 'We made this investment because we believe in the importance of open-source privacy-preserving technology,' Managing Partner Haseeb Qureshi said on X on Friday. 'Charging a venture firm for a portfolio company's alleged misconduct would be unprecedented.' Attorneys for Tornado Cash co-founder Roman Storm want to call Dragonfly Managing Partner Tom Schmidt as a witness in Storm's criminal trial, which began last week in New York. But Schmidt, apparently facing the spectre of prosecution, has said he intends to invoke his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination, according to Storm's attorneys. 'Are you looking at possibly prosecuting everyone at Dragonfly?' Judge Katherine Polk Failla asked federal prosecutor Thane Rehn on Friday during a back-and-forth over Schmidt's potential testimony, according to a post from Inner City Press. 'Not everyone,' Rehn reportedly replied. Tornado Cash allows users to cloak the movement of crypto from one wallet to another. Its users include people who want to maintain their privacy on the blockchain, as well as cybercriminals who have used it to launder stolen crypto. Prosecutors have charged Storm with conspiracy to commit money laundering, operate an unlicensed money-transmitting business, and violate US sanctions. He faces more than 40 years in prison. Dragonfly invested $882,000 in Peppersec in August 2020, according to a document unveiled in court on Thursday. Qureshi said Friday that Dragonfly 'obtained an outside legal opinion that confirmed that Tornado Cash as built complied with the law.' Private messages At Storm's trial Thursday, prosecutors shared a series of private messages between the Tornado Cash founders and Dragonfly executives. The executives advised the founders on their business plans, including a proposal to re-create Tornado Cash with anti-money laundering features, the messages show. Two days before investing in Tornado Cash, Qureshi urged Storm to create a three-year vesting schedule for the founders' tokens. 'You don't want to spook the market,' Qureshi said. '2 years is on the small side these days for founder lockups.' In February 2022, Storm asked Schmidt to urge holders of the Tornado Cash token to vote to introduce a 'relay registry' — a protocol feature that was key to some of Storm's alleged crimes, prosecutors say. Later that year, governments began to scrutinise privacy-enhancing crypto protocols such as Tornado Cash, and the founders began to implement changes to limit its use by cybercriminals. In April, the founders changed the Tornado Cash website to block crypto wallets sanctioned by the US. A month later, Storm told Dragonfly executives the Peppersec team was 'brainstorming an idea.' 'Privacy for blockchain with full compliance,' Storm said in a message in a group chat that included Qureshi and Schmidt. 'Has to be under new brand name, basically fork of Tornado Cash but with KYC/AML in it.' Qureshi said he was 'not a fan' of the idea. 'Legally it seems fine, but I just don't know if anyone will actually want this,' he said. 'Market need seems quite thin.' Dragonfly cooperation Tornado Cash was sanctioned by the US Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control that August. (Those sanctions were lifted this year after Ethereum developer Preston Van Loon and other Tornado Cash users successfully sued the Treasury Department.) 'Despite public assurances otherwise, Tornado Cash has repeatedly failed to impose effective controls designed to stop it from laundering funds for malicious cyber actors on a regular basis,' Treasury official Brian Nelson said in a statement. Storm was arrested a year later. Despite living in Washington State, the software engineer is being tried in the Southern District of New York. Prosecutors say that by communicating with Schmidt while the executive was in New York, Storm committed his alleged crimes in the district. 'We always encouraged our portfolio companies to follow the law, and we maintain that Tornado Cash itself has a lawful right to exist—a view reinforced by Van Loon v. Department of the Treasury and OFAC's subsequent rescission of sanctions,' Qureshi said Thursday. Dragonfly received a government subpoena in 2023 and has 'fully cooperated' with the government's investigation of Roman Storm since, according to Qureshi. He added that prosecutors have 'made clear' the venture firm was not a target of their investigation. 'We believe the government's statement in court today was primarily to undermine a defense of Tornado Cash—to make it more difficult for the defense to call Tom to testify on the stand,' Qureshi said. 'After all of this time—years later—bringing charges against Dragonfly would be outrageous, contrary to the facts and the law, and would induce a chilling effect onto all investment into crypto and privacy-preserving technologies in America.' Aleks Gilbert is DL News' New York-based DeFi Correspondent. Reach out to him with tips at aleks@ Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
21 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Serial butt sniffer arrested in California
A registered sex offender in California was arrested again on Tuesday after allegedly sniffing a woman's rear end at a Nordstrom Rack in Burbank. Calese Carron Crowder, 38, of Glendale, was detained after a report of a suspicious man loitering in the women's department of a Nordstrom Rack at the Empire Center on North Victory Place. Security footage showed Crowder following a female shopper before crouching behind her and appearing to sniff her buttocks, authorities said. Police found Crowder on Tuesday at a Walmart in the same shopping center as Nordstrom Rack , where he was also allegedly seen sniffing women. Crowder is on active parole and is a registered sex offender with a history of similar 'lewd conduct' in Glendale and Burbank dating back to 2021, police said. He is charged with loitering with intent to commit a crime and is being held in custody on $100,000 bail. His next court appearance is scheduled for August 1. Crowder first gained media attention in August 2023, when content creator Michaela Witter posted a viral TikTok showing him allegedly sniffing her behind at a Barnes & Noble in Burbank. He claimed he was bent down to tie his shoe when confronted by Witter. The woman said she also observred him sniff another woman in the bookstore. Witter said other women contacted her about Crowder after her video, claiming they had also been targeted by him at stores like Urban Outfitters and Marshalls. Crowder was arrested in 2023 for peeping and prowling at a Glendale home with children present. Crowder had previously served prison time for burglary and robbery and was sentenced in February 2023 to a year in jail for indecent exposure in Santa Clarita, but was released early, according to law enforcement. He was arrested again that August for peeping and prowling at a Glendale home with children present.
