An Illinois man has been charged in federal court with making threats against President Donald Trump, following an investigation led by the FBI and the U.S. Secret Service.
Derek Lopez, 27, was arrested on Oct. 28 without incident in El Paso after FBI agents from the agency’s Springfield office and El Paso police conducted a coordinated traffic stop.
“The driver, identified as Derek Lopez of El Paso, was wanted on a federal warrant for making threats against the President,” the El Paso Police Department said in a statement. “Lopez was apprehended without resistance.”
The suspect was interviewed by FBI and Secret Service agents before being booked into the Woodford County Jail. He faces a federal charge of making threats against the president, a crime punishable by up to five years in prison.
FBI Director Kash Patel called the alleged threats “heinous” and said they would be pursued with the full force of law.
“The threats against President Trump allegedly posted by this individual are heinous and have no place in our society,” Patel said in a post on social media. “Let this be a message: anyone who threatens violence against public officials or any American will be found and brought to justice.”
Hellbound and Down 