The FBI and DHS issued a joint intelligence bulletin on Friday warning of “violent threats” against federal law enforcement, courts and government personnel and facilities, according to CNN. The threats come in the wake of FBI agents executing a search warrant at former President Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort last week.
The FBI is reportedly investigating an “unprecedented” surge of threats against bureau personnel and property, including some threats targeting agents listed in court records as having involvement in the search of Mar-a-Lago, a law enforcement source told CNN.
“These threats are occurring primarily online and across multiple platforms, including social media sites, web forums, video sharing platforms, and image boards. The FBI and DHS would like to ensure that law enforcement, court, and government personnel are aware of the range of threats and criminal and violent incidents,” the joint bulletin reads, according to CNN.
The bulletin noted that the increase in violent threats includes a “threat to place a so-called dirty bomb in front of FBI Headquarters and issuing general calls for ‘civil war’ and ‘armed rebellion,'” CNN reported.
The bulletin also reportedly states that the FBI and DHS have identified threats against specific individuals, including the federal judge, Bruce Reinhart, who approved the Mar-a-Lago search warrant.
A law enforcement source told CNN that officials at the FBI headquarters division responsible for the security of personnel have also examined efforts by online actors to publicly post the personal information of bureau employees, which include the agents who conducted the search of Mar-a-Lago.
On Friday, the names of two agents who signed paperwork for the search warrant began to circulate online following a leak of the warrant prior to its official unsealing. The warrant was unsealed and released by Reinhart on Friday at the DOJ’s request and after Trump’s lawyers agreed to the release. The court-released version of the warrant redacted the agents’ names.
The joint bulletin was issued a day after a man who allegedly attempted to break into the FBI’s field office in Cincinnati died after a lengthy standoff with law enforcement. The suspect’s motive has not been determined, but he had previously come under the scrutiny by the FBI over his alleged ties to the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection and having associates within a far-right extremist group, two law enforcement sources told CNN on Friday.
