A 39-year-old man from Rochester, New York, has been arrested by federal authorities after he allegedly threatened to kill Donald Trump Jr., the eldest son of US President Donald Trump.
According to federal prosecutors, James Gerald Eckert Jr. used his real name to post a series of threatening messages on the live chat of the podcast “Triggered with Donald Trump Jr.”. In one of them he wrote: “I will kill you,” while in others he used strong and threatening language.
According to foreign media reports, the threats were discovered on June 18 by a US Secret Service agent who was on duty at the residence of Donald Trump Jr. According to the investigation, the 39-year-old also published an eight-minute video on the Rumble platform, where he continued to issue threats against Trump Jr. One of his messages was: "You're dead, it's over. I'll kill Trump Jr. again." Federal authorities have put him in handcuffs and he is now facing charges of making threats against a federally protected person.
Threats against other people
Prosecutors say Eckert didn't just target Donald Trump Jr. He also allegedly threatened Rumble's executive director, Chris Pawlowski.
The indictment also alleges that he posted threatening messages on Facebook against Rochester Mayor Malik Evans, saying he would turn on his family and that the case would not be over until he died. Four days later, on June 11, the same account allegedly posted a threatening comment on the page of New York State Senator Samra Brooks, saying: You are going to die.
Facing many years in prison
The 39-year-old is accused of threatening to kill, kidnap or cause bodily harm to a member of the immediate family of the President of the United States, a crime that carries a prison sentence of up to five years.
He appeared before federal Judge Mark Pedersen on Monday for his initial appearance and remains in custody until his parole hearing, which is set for July 20.
