Georgia state authorities are looking into online threats made against members of the grand jury that on Monday indicted Donald Trump.
Right-wing forums were used to disseminate private information, including the addresses and pictures of the jurors.
The Fulton County Sheriff‘s Office declared that it was aware of the threats and that it was looking for individuals responsible.
In Georgia, it is customary to reveal the names of the jurors in an indictment.
However, after the jurors’ identities were made public, followers of the former president Trump reportedly gathered online data and shared images and addresses to forums, including the social media platform Telegram.
It happens shortly after the jury decided to indict Mr. Trump on 13 counts, including racketeering and interference in political campaigns. He claims that the accusations are made for political reasons.
Officials claimed that in addition to threats made against jurors, personal information about individuals was also exchanged. According to the police, the threats may have intimidated the jurors.
According to a statement from the Fulton County Sheriff’s Office, “our investigators are closely collaborating with local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies to track down the source of threats in Fulton County and other jurisdictions.”
It stated that they take the situation seriously and will act immediately to protect the safety of the jury.
One individual posted a remark on Facebook saying, “I thought it only fair to share a few names from that grand jury.”
The article was later taken down; it had listed numerous jurors’ potential residences and phone numbers.
Other comments made by users on Mr. Trump’s website, Truth social, urged followers to “make sure [the jurors] can’t walk down the street” and to “make them infamous.”
According to reports, some posts contain violent speech directed towards Fani Willis, the Georgia prosecutor in charge of Mr. Trump’s case.
According to the Reuters news agency, two NBC News journalists who wrote about the grand jury event also had their own alleged addresses released online.
The distribution of juror information as a “hit list” was denounced by Media Matters, a nonprofit organisation that keeps an eye on conservative media outlets.
Georgia stands out from other states in the US court system because it discloses the identities of the jurors, ostensibly to increase public trust in the justice system.
However, they don’t divulge their addresses or any other private information.
Mr. Trump, who is currently the front-runner for the Republican nomination to run for president in the election of 2024, has frequently criticised the strongest accusations made against him.
US prosecutors claimed earlier this month that a post he made on Truth was meant to frighten those connected to a case against him.
A lady in Texas has been charged with making a murderous threat against a judge who is in charge of another lawsuit against Mr. Trump.
A few hours before the president arrived in Utah last week, FBI agents shot and killed an armed man in Utah who had allegedly threatened Joe Biden with death. He was discovered by federal officials as a result of a threat he made on Truth Social. The business informed the National Threat Operations Centre of the FBI.
A Canadian woman who sent ricin-laced mail to Donald Trump when he was president was sentenced to 22 years in prison on Thursday in the US.