WFLX-West Palm Beach Police Department (WPBPD) interim Chief Tony Araujo announced at a press conference Saturday afternoon about an arrest made following alleged threats against President Donald Trump.
WATCH: Interim Chief Araujo announces arrest of a man for making violent social media threats against Trump:
On Jan. 20, WPBPD detectives and the FBI began an investigation and found a series of violent posts on social media created by Shannon Atkins, 46, of West Palm Beach.
After establishing probable cause, police stopped Atkins near his home at around 7:30 p.m. Jan. 24. Atkins also had three bags of cocaine on him at the time of his arrest, police said.
Atkins was taken to the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office Main Detention Center and is facing one count of written or electronic threats to kill, do bodily injury, or conduct a mass shooting or act of terrorism— a second-degree felony. Atkins is also facing a charge of cocaine possession.
The Secret Service will determine if Atkins will face any federal charges.
Araujo said that Atkins expressed during his interview with police that the posts were a joke.
“In today’s climate, you really can’t say things like this,” Araujo said. “We have incident after incident, example after example of when these threats become real and we take these very seriously.”Atkins is being held without bond.
This arrest comes after a Sunny Isles Beach man was arrested for jumping over a wall surrounding Mar-a-Lagoon Jan. 23. Bijan T. Arceo, 32, was arrested and faces one count of occupied trespassing. on Jan. 23.
