Federal prosecutors have charged a 32-year-old Miami Beach resident with making repeated death threats against President Donald Trump and two senior administration officials after authorities say he posted dozens of violent messages on social media over a three-month period.
Nathaniel Sanders II made his first appearance in Miami federal court May 5, 2026, facing charges that could send him to prison for up to 10 years if convicted of threatening the president and transmitting threats across state lines, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida announced that day.
Between Jan. 28 and April 22, 2026, Sanders posted violent content on X and Instagram targeting Trump, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and former Attorney General Pam Bondi, according to a criminal complaint filed by a Secret Service special agent.
Disturbing Videos Aimed At The First Lady
Among the most alarming posts was an April 10 Instagram video that appeared directed at First Lady Melania Trump, in which Sanders called the president “the biggest pedophile” in the world.
“I don’t know what to do Melania, like, all I got is a gun. It’s the only thing I can use now is a gun,” Sanders said, according to the complaint.
Just two minutes later, Sanders uploaded another video targeting Rubio, who also serves as Acting National Security Advisor. He spoke partly in Spanish, saying “yo no tengo miedo de nadie” — “I’m not scared of anyone” — before switching to English.
A week after the First Lady video, Sanders posted another clip calling Trump an “orange pedophile a– pervert” and warning, “I’m going to kill you.” Two days later, prosecutors say, he used his second Instagram account to threaten Bondi with posts including “Imma kill all y’all pedophiles” and “Immakill you.”
In yet another post directed at the president, Sanders told Trump to “come find me” so that he “can stomp you in the ground.”
How The Investigation Unfolded
The investigation began when a U.S. Capitol Police special agent alerted the Secret Service’s Protective Intelligence Operations Center to a threat Sanders made against Trump in January. Nearly simultaneously — and without knowledge of the Capitol Police referral — an analyst with the Secret Service’s Open Source Intelligence Branch independently discovered multiple posts from Sanders’ X account.
One post threatened to “bomb” the White House. Minutes later, Sanders added a chilling two-word message: “I mean it.”
Investigators linked the X account to Sanders and discovered two Instagram accounts bearing his name. Those accounts, prosecutors said, were filled with videos of Sanders “complaining and speaking angrily about his hatred” for Trump, Rubio and Bondi.
Federal law enforcement officers showed up at Sanders’ Miami Beach residence in February to question him about the initial posts. He declined to speak with them, instead calling the officers “pedophiles,” the complaint says. The Secret Service special agent who wrote the complaint later verified that Sanders was the person shown in all of the videos.
Prosecutors Draw A Hard Line
U.S. Attorney Jason A. Reding Quiñones for the Southern District of Florida used the announcement to send a blunt message about the boundaries of permissible speech in an increasingly volatile political climate.
Special Agent in Charge Michael Townsend of the Secret Service’s Miami Field Office added his own warning to would-be offenders. “Making threats against the president of the United States is a federal crime, and we treat it with the seriousness it deserves every time,” Townsend said. The agency also cautioned that deleting posts, hiding behind a username, or firing off angry messages online does not make threats any less serious in the eyes of federal law. Despite the volume and severity of the alleged threats, the complaint contains no indication that Sanders took any concrete steps to carry out an attack. Still, federal authorities have moved swiftly, citing the explicit references to firearms, bombings and physical violence as justification for the charges.
What Comes Next In Court
Sanders was represented by a public defender at his initial hearing on Monday but the attorney did not immediately respond to an email request for comment, court records show. A detention hearing was set for Thursday, May 7, and his arraignment is scheduled for May 18.
Sanders has prior legal troubles. In March 2026, he was arrested on a criminal mischief charge after destroying shelves at a South Beach vape shop, causing approximately $7,000 in damage.
The charges represent the latest in a series of alleged plots and threats against Trump that federal agents have intercepted since his return to the White House last year. While many such threats are dismissed as venting or political hyperbole, prosecutors made clear that posts naming firearms, bombs and specific officials cross a clear legal line — one Sanders is now accused of crossing repeatedly.