Tallahassee Man Sentenced to Two Years for Online Threats Against Trump, Fed Chair, and Congressman

A Tallahassee man has been sentenced to two years in federal prison for a series of online threats targeting President Donald Trump, former Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, and then-U.S. Representative Eric Swalwell.

Diego M. Villavicencio, 36, pleaded guilty earlier this year to two counts of sending interstate threats, one count of impeding or retaliating against a federal official, and one count of making threats against the president. U.S. District Court proceedings in the Northern District of Florida resulted in the prison term, to be followed by three years of supervised release. The first year of supervision will be served under home detention. The court also ordered Villavicencio to undergo a mental health evaluation and treatment and to submit to computer monitoring by federal probation officials.

According to court documents and the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Villavicencio made the threats across social media platforms over several months. On September 15, 2025, he posted on his X account images showing red crosshairs aimed at Powell’s head. One post stated that “Jerome Powell will be shot and killed September 23,” while another declared “Jerome is next.”

The following day, Villavicencio responded publicly to a post by Swalwell, writing that he would kill the congressman and his family and that “Corruption listens to bullets.” He followed up with a direct message stating, “You are going to be shot and killed on September 24.”

Months later, on January 25, 2026, Villavicencio responded to a post on the anonymous imageboard 4chan. He wrote that he planned to drive to Mar-a-Lago “to take a couple of shots at trump and some of the other corrupt plutocrats.”

The case was investigated jointly by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Secret Service, the United States Capitol Police, and the Federal Reserve Board Protective Service. U.S. Attorney John P. Heekin for the Northern District of Florida emphasized the office’s position on such cases, stating that criminal threats directed at public officials are becoming alarmingly more common and that there is zero tolerance for the conduct in the district.

Villavicencio’s guilty plea and sentencing close a case that spanned threats issued in late 2025 and early 2026. Federal authorities continue to treat explicit online threats of violence against the president and other officials as serious criminal matters subject to prosecution.