Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) special agents in Fort Myers, Florida, have arrested Joseph Giancola for allegedly posting online death threats against officers of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The arrest comes as the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) reports an alarming 8,000% increase in death threats directed at ICE officers.
The DHS released a statement on Friday detailing the arrest.
Giancola, who posted on the social media platform Bluesky under the pseudonym “Cain Delon,” is accused of making multiple violent threats, including:
- “Shoot the ICE Nazis down like the rabid dogs they are”
- “Just get a gun and shoot the ICE Nazis down”
- “Start by shooting ice thugs dead”
- “Shoot those ice thugs dead”
- “Shoot the ICE agents down.”
According to the DHS, ICE officers are currently facing a more than 1,000% increase in assaults and an 8,000% increase in death threats against them.
“This cowardly individual made repeated disgusting death threats against ICE law enforcement officers. He is now in federal custody and will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law,” said Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin.
McLaughlin emphasized the danger faced by officers who “risk their lives every single day to remove the worst of the worst including murderers, rapists, pedophiles, terrorists, and gang members.” She highlighted that the officers are experiencing “an unprecedented level of violence and threats against them and their families,” including “bounties placed on their heads for their murders, threats to their families, stalking, and doxxing online.”
The DHS statement also took aim at political and media rhetoric, warning that comparing ICE law enforcement to groups like the Nazi Gestapo, the Secret Police, and slave patrols “has consequences.” The department stressed that ICE agents “are fathers and mothers, sons, and daughters” and are “simply enforcing the law.”
“The violence and dehumanization of these men and women who are simply enforcing the law must stop,” the statement concluded, reaffirming DHS’s commitment to prosecuting individuals who make threats of violence against its personnel.
Giancola is now in federal custody.
READ: Political Violence Reaches ‘Fever Pitch,’ Driving Officials To Seek Refuge On Military Bases
Please make a small donation to the Tampa Free Press to help sustain independent journalism. Your contribution enables us to continue delivering high-quality, local, and national news coverage.
Sign up: Subscribe to our free newsletter for a curated selection of top stories delivered straight to your inbox.
