Marine sentenced for threatening to assassinate Trump
The former soldier threatened to kill the president numerous times
Mickael Gedlu, a former US infantryman and Marine, has been sentenced to 18 months in a Texas federal prison after he threatened to kill President Donald Trump in a series of online posts.
Gedlu, 36, learned his fate on April 24 via teleconference by Chief U.S. District Judge Barbara M.G. Lynn after pleading guilty last Friday. After serving his time in a Texas federal prison, he will then be on three years of supervised release.
According to the State Department, Gedlu explicitly stated his desire to kill the commander-in-chief on numerous occasions. His social media postings between December 2018 and June 2019 were filled with threats of violence. Prosecutors said that the Secret Service and Dallas Police Department helped conduct the case.
WASHINGTON, DC – APRIL 09: U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during the daily coronavirus briefing as Labor Secretary Eugene Scalia (R) looks on. (Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)
“I am waiting for Trump to visit Dallas before I attempt to assassinate him,” he reportedly posted to Youtube.
In a Facebook post, Gedlu described how long he had been waiting for Trump to die.
“For 20 straight months now, openly and publicly, I have been calling for President Trump’s death,” Gedlu wrote.
Court documents from the proceedings also revealed that the Marine showed up to an event that Trump was attending in May 2018 at the Adolphus Hotel in Dallas. Gedlu arrived there 30 minutes before the president’s arrival and stood across the street. He was observed by police holding a “Kill Trump” sign and kept screaming “Kill the president.”
Gedlu went on to post about the incident after sharing a Washington Post article that suggested Trump had normalized racism.
‘I believe it was the SS that suggested I be taken to a hospital instead of jail. I was surprised at the leniency the police showed me as I screamed, “KILL THE PRESIDENT, KILL TRUMP, repetitively. The president showed up, where I was arrested, 2 hours after I was arrested. Grab em by the MAGA hat,” he wrote.
Gizaw Gedlu stated last year that his son was mentally ill and was not taking medicine that was prescribed to him.
“That’s his problem,” Gizaw, 71, said. “He talks too much, simply.”
Have you subscribed to theGrio’s new podcast “Dear Culture”? Download our newest episodes now!
https://open.spotify.com/episode/6kzjPmeakob2uRdrGhGFaJ
https://open.spotify.com/episode/3BGIlfF2N2d2NFEzBnxVLh
