UPDATE: Prosecutors have dropped their criminal case against Biddle.
25-year-old Sheldon Biddle of Ormond Beach was arrested last week for allegedly making online threats against U.S. President Donald Trump. Biddle was charged federally for statements reportedly made on his X account.
Among the tweets Biddle is said to have made is one, posted April 2nd, which said "Trump is gonna get assassinated for being a treasonous traitor". Notably, Trump was shot in the ear during a campaign rally in Pennsylvania in July 2024. Biddle's sentiments likely refer to Trump's efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election results, leading to him being criminally charged in federal district court and Georgia state court.
Biddle also allegedly tweeted that "if I was in DC I'd shoot you @netanyahu", referring to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Since the Gaza war began in October 2023, Netanyahu has been among the most polarizing heads of state in the world. Over 54,000 Palestinians have been killed, mostly women and children, leading to calls for Netanyahu's prosecution.
Furthermore, Biddle was said to have written "You're gonna eat led tyrant boy" to Dan Bongino, the deputy director of the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI). Bongino was an appointee of the second and current Trump administration. Biddle is also accused of threatening businessman and former Trump official Elon Musk.
Still, Biddle's political sentiments don't appear to be strictly anti-Trump or anti-conservative. He was also said to have posted a YouTube video titled "Joe Biden molested me" (Biden was accused of sexual assault during his 2020 campaign) and another titled "Shooting up the YouTube headquarters for all the censorship", as reported by the Daytona Beach News-Journal. The justification for his alleged crimes was described by the Ormond Beach Police Department as 'protecting the Constitution'.
In addition to his federal charges, Biddle has been charged in Volusia County with written threats to kill. He was initially booked into the Volusia County Branch Jail on April 11th and was released on $10,000 bond the following day. He was rearrested on June 5th for the same charge plus one of being a fugitive from justice.
Previous Volusia County charges for Biddle include battery, illegal concealed firearm carrying, resisting arrest with violence and trespassing.
“We have absolutely no tolerance for threats of violence in our city,” said Ormond Beach Police Chief Jesse Godfrey. “No one should feel unsafe in their place of worship, neighborhood or community, and we will act swiftly to hold offenders accountable.”
