Crime and Domestic Extremism

Federal prosecutors in the Southern District of Ohio have charged 21‑year‑old Justin Mesael Novoa of Columbus with making threatening interstate communications, including threats to assault or murder federal law‑enforcement officers, after he allegedly posted on X that people "should blast every ICE agent they find" and that he "can’t wait to shoot" ICE agents and "MAGA maggots." According to DOJ charging documents, Homeland Security Investigations traced the threats to Novoa’s @Father2High account and, during a December 2025 search of his home, agents seized two rifles, two shotguns, a handgun, ammunition, two helmets and body armor, along with a pro‑Palestinian flag hanging near the gear. The case, announced Thursday by U.S. Attorney Dominick S. Gerace II and acting HSI Detroit special agent in charge Jared Murphey, carries potential penalties of up to 10 years in prison for threatening to kill a federal officer and up to five years for making threatening interstate communications. No injuries were reported, and DOJ emphasized that the criminal complaint contains only allegations and that Novoa is presumed innocent unless proven guilty. The arrest comes as federal agencies publicly warn about rising threats and assaults against ICE and Border Patrol personnel amid mass‑deportation operations and politically charged protests, with law‑enforcement officials trying to draw a bright line between protected speech and explicit incitements to violence.