Texas man charged for violent threats against ICE, U.S. officials

A 35-year-old man from North Texas has been arrested and charged in federal court for making violent threats against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents and other public officials, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Texas announced Monday.

Robert Wilson King was charged on April 3 with transmitting an interstate threat, a federal offense that carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison. He appeared before a judge on Monday morning and remains in custody pending a detention hearing scheduled for Wednesday.

According to a criminal complaint, King allegedly posted a series of threats on social media on March 29, including one that read: “If I see ICE agents in my neighborhood I’m opening fire. It’s time to stop being p***** and put the second amendment to work. ICE are not real cops, they are a secret police force with no real legal authority. Kill them.” Later, he allegedly followed up on a different platform, stating he wanted to “double down” on the threat.

The complaint also documents a series of online posts in which King made violent remarks against multiple public officials, including Texas Governor Greg Abbott, U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem, Vice President JD Vance and his wife Usha Vance, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, FBI Director Kash Patel, and President Donald Trump.

A special agent of the Texas Department of Public Safety noted that King’s posts included not only threats against individuals but also inflammatory remarks such as “I’m absolutely going to burn a Tesla now.”

King was arrested under a state warrant for terroristic threats issued by a justice of the peace in Kaufman County, Texas. He is currently being held at the Kaufman County Detention Facility on a $7,500 bond.