An Indiana woman, Nathalie Rose Jones, 50, of Lafayette, has been arrested and charged with making death threats against President Donald Trump via social media. Jones was arrested in Washington, D.C., on Saturday, August 16, and the charges were announced by U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.
Jones faces charges in U.S. District Court for "threatening to take the life of, kidnap, or inflict bodily harm upon the President of the United States, and transmitting in interstate commerce communications containing threats to kidnap any person or any threat to injure the person of another".
The U.S. Secret Service identified threatening comments posted on an Instagram account labeled "nath.jones" between August 2 and August 9. These posts called for Trump's removal from office, labeled him a terrorist, referred to his administration as a dictatorship, and blamed him for extreme and unnecessary loss of life related to COVID-19.
The threats allegedly escalated on Jones's Facebook account. A post on August 6, directed at the FBI, stated, "I am willing to sacrificially kill this POTUS by disemboweling him and cutting out his trachea with Liz Cheney and all The Affirmation present". Another post, directed at U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, requested assistance in arranging "the arrest and removal ceremony of POTUS Trump as a terrorist on the American People" at the White House on August 16.
Jones voluntarily agreed to an interview with the Secret Service on August 15. During the interview, she called Trump a "terrorist" and a "Nazi" and stated she would kill him if given the opportunity, even at "the compound". She also mentioned possessing a "bladed object" intended to "carry out her mission of killing" Trump, motivated by a desire to "avenge all the lives lost during the COVID-19 pandemic," which she blamed on the former president's policies and stance on vaccinations.
On August 16, Jones participated in a protest in Washington, D.C., that went around the White House complex. Following the march, she was interviewed a second time by the Secret Service and admitted to making threats against Trump during the previous day's interview. Although she denied any current intention to harm Trump, she confirmed ownership of the "Nath Jones" Facebook account and the threatening posts.
U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro stated, "Threatening the life of the President is one of the most serious crimes and one that will be met with swift and unwavering prosecution. Make no mistake—justice will be served".
The case is being investigated by the U.S. Secret Service and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Josh Satter.
