A Missouri man is facing federal charges following a series of alleged violent threats made via social media against former President Donald Trump, Republicans at large, and law enforcement officers, according to a criminal complaint filed in the Western District of Missouri on Aug. 30.
Justin Lee White, 36, is accused of using interstate communication to spread a slew of online threats to injure Trump, Republicans, and law enforcement in violation of federal law, culminating in a multi-agency investigation led by the FBI, according to the complaint.
The FBI said in the criminal complaint that from late July to August, White allegedly posted multiple messages on platforms like TikTok and Facebook threatening violence if his demands regarding supposed electoral fairness were not met.
According to the complaint, one of White’s videos around July 31 said, “This goes to every Republican out there. You don’t start playing fair with them votes, I’ll start showing up with a gun, I promise you. I’ll show you what real [expletive] violence is, and I’m not afraid to kill you or a [expletive] cop. So, if you want to play dirty at the votes this year, in 2024, just remember, where I come from, we get physical. So, if you Republicans don’t play fair, there will be guns and violence involved this year.”
The TikTok video was captioned, “This is a message to Donald Trump and the Republicans. If you don’t play...”
The Springfield, Missouri, Police Department received a tip about the TikTok video—and forwarded the tip and video to the FBI for further action.
Upon closer examination, law enforcement said they discovered additional threatening posts on the suspect’s Facebook page.
In one post dated Aug. 22, White allegedly included a photograph of a firearm and ammunition, warning that any police officer who approached his residence would be met with violence. The complaint describes these posts as containing explicit threats to “kill” and “beat the [expletive] life out” of police officers.
The tip led to a search warrant being executed at White’s residence on Aug. 29, where FBI agents said they recovered firearms, ammunition, and further evidence supporting the charges.
During his subsequent arrest and interview, White allegedly admitted to creating the threatening posts and expressed regret, adding that he had “[expletive] up” in posting the content out of anger.
Authorities said he described getting into a shooting altercation with a police officer when he was around 16 or 17 years old, saying he “beat” the case because the officer had allegedly shot at him first. He allegedly said that this incident and other videos where cops were allegedly “aggressive or violent toward members of society” made him hate cops.
White is in custody and faces up to five years in prison if convicted and/or a fine of $250,000, according to the complaint. A preliminary and detention hearing is set for Sept. 5.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Missouri had no further comment at this time, and an attorney listed as representing White did not respond to a request for comment from The Epoch Times before publication.
