A Wisconsin man has been charged with making threats toward federal law enforcement officers in a series of TikTok videos in which he promoted the killing of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.
The man, Andrew Stanton, 38, of Kenosha, Wis., pleaded not guilty in U.S. District Court in Milwaukee on Thursday, one day after he was indicted on three criminal counts that carry a combined maximum of 20 years in prison.
The charges include threatening to assault, kidnap or murder a U.S. official; sending threatening communications across state lines; and stalking, according to court records.
Mr. Stanton was arrested on Oct. 8, four days after saying in a TikTok video that ICE agents conducting immigration roundups for the Trump administration should be targeted, the authorities said.
“It’s time we start shooting at you,” a criminal complaint quoted Mr. Stanton as saying.
In a statement, John Bradley, a lawyer for Mr. Stanton, a Marine Corps veteran who served in the Iraq War, said: “It is important to remember that the contents of a criminal complaint represent one side of the story and are just allegations. Mr. Stanton pled not guilty. He is presumed innocent, and we will vigorously defend against these charges in court.”
Lawyers for Mr. Stanton, who remains in federal custody, did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Thursday.
Federal investigators said that they began monitoring Mr. Stanton’s social media posts in late August, citing a tip from the Wisconsin Statewide Intelligence Center, a federal office that tracks suspected terrorist activity.
At the time, a TikTok account registered to Mr. Stanton asked for whereabouts of any Israel Defense Forces members in the Illinois or Wisconsin area, a special agent for the F.B.I. wrote in the criminal complaint.
In another TikTok video posted in late August, Mr. Stanton said that words were not bringing about change from politicians, the authorities said.
“You have to use bullets,” he was quoted as saying in the complaint.
Investigators said Mr. Stanton recorded a separate video that same day in which he endorsed terrorism and the text onscreen read, “I think we should be OFFING federal agents.”
According to the F.B.I., law enforcement officers tried to interview Mr. Stanton twice in early September and were unable to reach him.
But he did not go dark on social media.
When a gunman fatally shot Charlie Kirk, the Turning Point USA founder and a right-wing ally of President Trump, while he was speaking at Utah Valley University on Sept. 10, Mr. Stanton resurfaced online, the authorities said.
“Long day for me, and I’m not necessarily out here to be eloquent,” Mr. Stanton said in a video that day, according to the complaint. “I just want to say one thing. Do more Charlie Kirks. Do a lot more Charlie Kirks.”
On Sept. 11, a supervisor with U.S. Customs and Border Protection who was assigned with the F.B.I. texted Mr. Stanton that he wanted to speak with him about his various posts on TikTok, the authorities said.
After initially using an obscenity to tell the investigator off, Mr. Stanton sent him a series of threatening text messages, according to the complaint, telling him “Kill yourself fed.”
According to the complaint, he also sent the federal agent a meme of Mr. Kirk bleeding from his neck, suggesting that the investigator should also meet a violent end.
“This should be a lesson on how To deal with fascists,” the caption said. “You don’t Debate them, you delete them.”
Neil Vigdor covers breaking news for The Times, with a focus on politics.
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