FBI Director Wray Denounces Threats After Raid on Trump’s Home: ‘Deplorable and Dangerous’

Lorenz DuchampsAugust 11, 2022

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FBI Director Christopher Wray on Wednesday condemned recent online threats against him and other federal agents in the wake of the agency’s raid on former President Donald Trump’s private Florida residence.

Wray, who was appointed as the agency’s director in 2017 by Trump, said violence against law enforcement is not the answer, calling threats circulating online “deplorable and dangerous.”

“Again, violence against law enforcement is not the answer, no matter what anybody’s upset about or who they’re upset with,” Wray told The Associated Press after a news conference at the agency’s field office in Nebraska, where he discussed the FBI’s focus on cybersecurity.

“Last year, there were 73 law enforcement officers around this country who were killed in the line of duty, as in murdered in the line of duty. It’s the highest number since 9/11,” he added, concluding that “any threats made against law enforcement … are deplorable and dangerous.”

Wray refused to answer questions and provide more details on the hours-long search, where dozens of FBI agents reportedly executed a search warrant approved last week by a magistrate judge in Florida.

Since the Aug. 8 raid on the former president’s private residence of Mar-a-Lago, online messages have appeared calling for a response to the unannounced search.

Reactions included “lock and load” and calls for federal agents and U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland to be assassinated. On the social networking service “Gab,” one poster going by the name of Stephen said he was awaiting “the call” to mount an armed revolution.

U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland speaks at the swearing in for the new Bureau of Prisons (BOP) Director Colette Peters at BOP headquarters in Washington on Aug. 2, 2022. (Evelyn Hockstein-Pool/Getty Images)

Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) said the search could lead to Garland’s impeachment, urging an investigation to look into