A criminal complaint was filed today in federal court in Brooklyn charging Brendan Hunt, also known as “X-Ray Ultra,” with threatening to murder United States officials. Hunt was arrested this morning in Queens.
“Our democracy depends on the legislators who shoulder the responsibility of government. By allegedly threatening to murder and intimidate elected officials, Hunt is striking at the core of our government,” stated Acting United States Attorney Seth DuCharme. “This Office will aggressively disrupt such conduct and prosecute offenders like the defendant to the fullest extent of the law.”
“Before the assault on the Capitol building, and again after, Hunt’s alleged online commentary directly called for the assassination of members of Congress. This is not a hard message to understand –threats of violence against our public officials won’t be tolerated. Mr. Hunt was arrested this morning by the FBI’s New York Joint Terrorism Task Force. To others from this area who still don’t get it – if you are considering a similar path to ‘take up arms’ like Mr. Hunt did, that road leads nowhere except a reservation at our building downtown,” stated FBI Assistant Director-in-Charge William Sweeney.
As alleged in the complaint, on January 8, 2021, two days after the riot in the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., Hunt posted a video to an Internet-based video sharing site in which he exhorted his viewers to violence, urging them that “[w]e need to go back to the U.S. Capitol when all of the Senators and a lot of the Representatives are back there, and this time we have to show up with our guns. And we need to slaughter these m—–f——.” The video was one in a series of statements by Hunt posted on social media since at least December 6, 2020, in which he called for violence and “public execution” against members of Congress.
“Trump, we want actual revenge on democrats,” Hunt wrote on Facebook in December. “Meaning, we want you to hold a public execution of pelosi aoc schumer etc. And if you dont do it, the citizenry will. We’re not voting in another rigged election. Start up the firing squads, mow down these commies, and lets take america back!”
“Anyone enforcing this lockdown mask vaccine bullshit deserves nothing less than a bullet in their fucking head! Including cops! If you’re going to shoot someone tho, go after a high value target like pelosi schumer or AOC. They really need to be put down. These commies will see death before they see us surrender! USA!!”
According to the New York Daily News, Hunt was an Occupy Wall Street activist who later became a Trump supporter.
If convicted, Hunt faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.
