Roanoke man charged with making online threats
Jeffrey L. Weaver is accused of posting threatening comments against two police officers on infowars.com.
By Laurence Hammack
A Roanoke man faces charges of making online threats against two police officers -- one in Oakland, Calif., and one in Martinsville -- after reading newspaper accounts of incidents in which they used deadly force.
Jeffrey L. Weaver, 47, made the threatening comments in January on a news Web site called infowars.com, according to a complaint filed earlier this week in U.S. District Court in Roanoke.
Weaver, who was ordered held without bond Friday, logged onto the site using the name "F---ThePIGS," the complaint states.
After reading a newspaper article on infowars.com that described how a 17-year-old boy died after being shocked with a Taser by a Martinsville police officer in January, Weaver wrote: "this makes my blood boil."
"Maybe I should drive to Martinsville with my 9mm Glock and some Teflon coated armor-piercing Black Rhino hollow point rounds and do the world a favor by ridding the world of this piece of s--- pig," the message read.
Authorities traced the post to Weaver's Internet protocol address, which they say was used several days earlier to make even more menacing comments about the fatal shooting of an unarmed man by police officers on a train platform in Oakland.
The New Year's Day death of 22-year-old Oscar Grant led to violent street protests and was also featured on infowars.com
"If I find out who the pig is then I will kill the pig who killed him," Weaver wrote on Jan. 5, according to the complaint.
A short time later, the address of one of the police officers involved in the shooting was posted to the Web site.
"Thanks for the address," the next post read. "Now that I know who he is and where he is it's only a matter of time." The complaint quoted Weaver as saying he planned to kill the officer's wife and child before killing him.
"This isn't a threat it's a f------ promise," the message continued.
On May 29, federal agents searched Weaver's Roanoke home. He told them he frequents infowars.com and admitted making the postings, according to the complaint.
Weaver said he was angry at the time but insisted he did not intend to harm anyone.
After hearing testimony Friday, U.S. Magistrate Judge Michael Urbanski ruled there was probable cause to support the charges and ordered Weaver held without bond.
Urbanski rejected an argument by public defender Fay Spence, who said Weaver's actions were protected by the First Amendment.
Infowars.com is based in Austin, Texas. It is affiliated with Alex Jones, a radio and Internet talk-show host who calls himself an "aggressive constitutionalist" who defends the Bill of Rights and the nation's borders while avoiding "the bogus political labels of left and right."
Jeffrey L. Weaver is accused of posting threatening comments against two police officers on infowars.com.
By Laurence Hammack
A Roanoke man faces charges of making online threats against two police officers -- one in Oakland, Calif., and one in Martinsville -- after reading newspaper accounts of incidents in which they used deadly force.
Jeffrey L. Weaver, 47, made the threatening comments in January on a news Web site called infowars.com, according to a complaint filed earlier this week in U.S. District Court in Roanoke.
Weaver, who was ordered held without bond Friday, logged onto the site using the name "F---ThePIGS," the complaint states.
After reading a newspaper article on infowars.com that described how a 17-year-old boy died after being shocked with a Taser by a Martinsville police officer in January, Weaver wrote: "this makes my blood boil."
"Maybe I should drive to Martinsville with my 9mm Glock and some Teflon coated armor-piercing Black Rhino hollow point rounds and do the world a favor by ridding the world of this piece of s--- pig," the message read.
Authorities traced the post to Weaver's Internet protocol address, which they say was used several days earlier to make even more menacing comments about the fatal shooting of an unarmed man by police officers on a train platform in Oakland.
The New Year's Day death of 22-year-old Oscar Grant led to violent street protests and was also featured on infowars.com
"If I find out who the pig is then I will kill the pig who killed him," Weaver wrote on Jan. 5, according to the complaint.
A short time later, the address of one of the police officers involved in the shooting was posted to the Web site.
"Thanks for the address," the next post read. "Now that I know who he is and where he is it's only a matter of time." The complaint quoted Weaver as saying he planned to kill the officer's wife and child before killing him.
"This isn't a threat it's a f------ promise," the message continued.
On May 29, federal agents searched Weaver's Roanoke home. He told them he frequents infowars.com and admitted making the postings, according to the complaint.
Weaver said he was angry at the time but insisted he did not intend to harm anyone.
After hearing testimony Friday, U.S. Magistrate Judge Michael Urbanski ruled there was probable cause to support the charges and ordered Weaver held without bond.
Urbanski rejected an argument by public defender Fay Spence, who said Weaver's actions were protected by the First Amendment.
Infowars.com is based in Austin, Texas. It is affiliated with Alex Jones, a radio and Internet talk-show host who calls himself an "aggressive constitutionalist" who defends the Bill of Rights and the nation's borders while avoiding "the bogus political labels of left and right."
