A Michigan man was arrested Friday and charged with making threats against FBI Director Kash Patel, federal prosecutors announced.
Anthony Daniel Palazzolo, 42, of Chesterfield Township, is accused of writing Facebook messages threatening to kill Patel and an associate earlier in October, according to the office of US Attorney Jerome F. Gorgon Jr. of the Eastern District of Michigan. Palazzolo is charged with interstate communications involving threats, court records show.
It is unclear who Patel’s associate is, though prosecutors included what they said were screenshots of redacted messages sent by Palazzolo, who refers to himself as Baby Bird in the message. Palazzolo is accused of messaging the unidentified Patel associate on October 8, “i put a hit on you” and Patel is “a dead mf too.”
Federal investigators used his Facebook and TikTok accounts to trace him to a residential address in Chesterfield Township, located about 30 miles north of Detroit, according to the criminal complaint filed by FBI Special Agent Brian Koczenasz. FBI agents went to his home on October 9 to interview him.
The complaint said Palazzolo wanted to talk about his belief the government was violating his property rights. He admitted to sending the message to the associate and Patel and apologized, saying he had no intent to harm anyone, the complaint stated. He also told FBI agents he had contacted several federal law enforcement agencies to complain about what he saw as an insufficient response to his concerns, the complaint said.
Before leaving, one FBI Task Force officer provided Palazzolo with his cellphone number and government email address, the complaint said. On October 12, Palazzolo emailed the officer, as well as a district court in Texas, the Secret Service and the Supreme Court with threats of sexual violence, according to the complaint. The next day, he called the officer, leaving two voicemails threatening to “use deadly force” on federal officials, the complaint said.
The FBI referred questions about the case to the US Attorney’s Office, which did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The defense attorney appointed to represent Palazzolo did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Palazzolo appeared in federal court in Michigan on Friday before Magistrate Judge David R. Grand, who ordered Palazzolo be temporarily detained. Palazzolo has a detention hearing set for Monday, court records show. Palazzolo did not enter a plea.
A Massachusetts man was arrested and charged in March with sending a threatening email to Patel’s fiancee, Alexis Wilkins, the previous month. Like Palazzolo, defendant Alden Welch Ruml faces a charge of interstate communications involving threats, a felony. He pleaded not guilty and has a jury trial set for February, court records show.
