Man jailed for saying AOC ‘should be shot’ tells police he’s ‘very proud’ he did it

An Ohio man charged after writing on Facebook that Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez "should be shot" told police he was "very proud" that he did it.Timothy James Ireland, 41, was indicted in Toledo for making interstate threats against AOC in addition to separate counts of being a felon and fugitive in possession of a firearm, the US attorney's office in Ohio announced on Friday.Officials say a concerned citizen reached out to U.S. Capitol Police on July 23 to warn of the threatening Facebook post, which they later confirmed was written by Ireland."She should be shot. Can't fire me, my employer would load the gun for me," Ireland wrote, according to police.The statement was apparently posted to Facebook along with a news story about the Democrat congresswoman, leading Capitol Police to call Ireland on August 2 after finding his phone number in public records.The man took full responsibility for the statement while speaking with police, adding he was "very proud" of his work, according to a criminal complaint.Ireland also admitted to having firearms that he "always carries concealed," police say.An FBI criminal history check revealed Ireland had two outstanding warrants, one for violating probation in a felony case in Florida and the other related to a failure to appear for a possession of marijuana charge in Cook County, Georgia.Ireland was also convicted in 1996 on four felony counts of dealing in stolen property in Sarasota County, according to the criminal complaint.The man was present when police raided his Toledo home five days after the phone call, the complaint read. He was detained for the active warrants and admitted to having ammunition inside his house.Investigators say they found three rounds of .32-caliber ammunition, and four rounds belonging to a .45-caliber weapon, stashed in kitchen drawers."There is absolutely no place in the marketplace of ideas for threats of violence against any person, especially those who are elected to represent the American people," US Attorney Justin Herdman said in a release."Disagreement on political issues cannot lead to acts of violence, and if it does, we will seek federal prison time."A spokesman for the Department of Justice said Ireland waived his hearing and will remain in custody at least until a bond hearing next week.Last month a police officer in the US state of Louisiana also took to Facebook to say AOC should be shot, suggesting that she “needs a round – and I don’t mean the kind she used to serve”.Charlie Rispoli, a 14-year veteran of the police department in Gretna, went on to call her "this vile idiot". He was sacked.His comments came after Donald Trump lashed out at 'The Squad', a group of four congresswoman including AOC, in a roundly condemned racist attack where he told them to "go back" to their countries \- despite them having lived in the US for decades.The Washington Post



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