Daniel Frisiello: Donald Trump Jr. White Powder Letter Suspect Charged
The FBI has arrested a man suspected of mailing Donald Trump Jr. an anonymous letter containing a suspicious white powder on February 12. Vanessa Trump, Trump Jr.’s wife and the president’s daughter in law, was briefly hospitalized after she became sick when she opened the envelope in the family’s New York City apartment. The contents of the envelope turned out to be non-toxic, fortunately.
The suspect, Massachusetts resident Daniel Frisiello, 24, also allegedly sent letters to a U.S. attorney, U.S. Senator Debbie Stabenow, pro-Trump actor Antonio Sabato Jr. who is running for Congress, and a Stanford Law School professor, NBC News reported. Frisiello faces charges including five counts of mailing a threat to cause injury and five counts of making hoax threats involving biological or chemical weapons, MassLive explained.
If convicted in a court of law, he could be sentenced to up to 10 years in prison.
The FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force raided Frisiello’s home, where he resides with his parents, on Thursday morning at about 8:00 a.m., arrested him and seized a large amount of evidence. Frisiello was arraigned on Thursday in U.S. District Court in Worcester, Massachusetts, and is due back in court on Monday for a detention hearing.
“[A]gents found evidence at the property that Frisiello had been sending the letters,” U.S Attorney Andrew E. Lelling claimed, the Daily Mail reported.
The suspect “was arrested after what prosecutors called ‘a textbook federal investigation’ that traced the unsigned letters to him after he also ordered a ‘glitter bomb’ for one of the recipients, using his own name,” NBC News added.
The envelope also allegedly contained a letter accusing Donald Trump Jr. of being an awful, hated person and an idiot. “You are getting what you deserve. So shut the f*** up,” the letter also read, according to multiple media reports.
In a tweet, Donald Trump Jr. thanked investigators for their efforts in the case.
My family and I are incredibly relieved to hear this news. No one should ever have to deal with this kind of sickening behavior. Truly amazing work from the @SecretService and other agencies involved. Thank you all for your dedication to law and order. https://t.co/OROvrSzCp3
— Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) March 1, 2018
“A quick glance at Daniel Frisiello’s Facebook page makes a few things clear: The Catholic Charities worker is a self-identified Democrat, fierce critic of President Trump, and an ardent supporter of gun control, among other causes,” the Boston Globe reported.
He has also been placed on leave from his job as a childcare worker for the Catholic organization.
Federal law enforcement officials detailed the arrest in the video clip below.
As the arrest of Daniel Frisiello for allegedly sending a letter filled with white powder to Donald Trump Jr. and others is a developing story, please check back for updates.
