Utah Man Killed in FBI Raid Knew He Was Under Investigation When He Threatened Biden, Taunted Agents: Court Papers

The Utah man who was fatally shot Wednesday during an FBI raid over threats to President Biden was made aware months prior that he was under investigation, but allegedly continued to threaten prominent Democrats and taunt federal agents online, court documents show.

Craig Robertson, whose age is listed in an online profile as 74, was shot and killed during the raid on his Provo home around 6:15 a.m. — hours before Biden was set to arrive in the state as part of a larger swing through the West Coast.

The FBI was approaching Robertson for the second time in a matter of months, this time in response to an ominous social media post made on Sunday, according to a criminal complaint.

“I HEAR BIDEN IS COMING TO UTAH,” the all-caps post read. “DIGGING OUT MY OLD GHILLIE SUIT AND CLEANING THE DUST OFF THE M24 SNIPER RIFLE. WELCOME, BUFFOON-IN-CHIEF!”

A ghillie suit is camouflage gear used by members of the military and others.

Robertson — who once posted images of himself holding a rifle and wearing such a suit — was allegedly armed when the FBI arrived to serve an arrest warrant early Wednesday, multiple law enforcement sources told the Associated Press on condition of anonymity.

In an unsealed criminal complaint filed Tuesday to request the arrest warrant, federal prosecutors accused Robertson of a litany of online threats against Biden, other notable Democrats, as well as FBI investigators. The complaint charged Robertson with making interstate threats, making threats against the president, and influencing, impeding, and retaliating against federal law enforcement officers by threat.

Though threatening posts highlighted in the documents date back to at least September 2022, FBI agents first visited Robertson on March 19 after a post going into graphic detail about a “dream” of “iradicating” Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg with a gunshot to the head. Other posts indicated a problem with Bragg over his office’s prosecution of former President Donald Trump.

When agents approached Robertson, he was wearing a dark suit, a hat with “TRUMP” emblazoned across the front, and a lapel pin resembling an AR-15-style rifle, according to court documents.

Robertson allegedly admitted to owning the social media account that made the post, but tried to wave off its content by arguing that he’d couched it as “a dream,” the filings state.

“We’re done here!” Robertson told the agents, according to the court filings. “Don’t return without a warrant!”

The filings do not indicate that any charges were filed against Robertson at the time.

In the months following that visit, Robertson allegedly kept up the threats, despite being well aware that he was being watched.

 In addition to Biden and Bragg, the posts variously rail against and threaten Vice President Kamala Harris, U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland, New York Attorney General Letitia James, and California Gov. Gavin Newsom.

They also targeted the FBI itself.

“TO MY FRIENDS IN THE FEDERAL BUREAU OF IDIOTS: I KNOW YOU’RE READING THIS AND YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW CLOSE YOUR AGENTS CAME TO ‘VIOLENT ERADICATION,’” read one post dated March 24, or less than a week after agents approached Robertson.

“THE FBI TRIED TO INTERFERE WITH MY FREE SPEECH RIGHT IN MY DRIVEWAY,” read another message posted on March 30. “MY 45ACP [handgun] WAS READY TO SMOKE ‘EM!!!”

Yet another undated post detailed in the filings asked, “HEY FBI, YOU STILL MONITORING MY SOCIAL MEDIA? CHECKING SO I CAN BE SURE TO HAVE A LOADED GUN HANDY IN CASE YOU DROP BY AGAIN.”

With Associated Press