Miami man accused of threatening to kill Gov. Ron DeSantis in social media post

MIAMI – A Miami man is accused of making an online threat to kill Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, according to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE).

Valentin Tomas Morales, 21, faces charges of making written or electronic threats to kill or cause bodily injury, a second-degree felony under Florida law.

According to an FDLE affidavit, the agency was alerted on Monday, January 6, about a post on the X social media platform, formerly known as Twitter.

The post, from the account @LEM0NTEK, said, “I think im going to f– kill Ron DeSantis.” The post was deleted shortly after being published.

An investigation identified Morales as the probable owner of the account.

The arrest report said special agents contacted Morales’ sister at his last known address in Miami, who confirmed he lived there and provided a phone number for him. She said Morales was at work at the time but did not know his place of employment.

FDLE said agents reached Morales by phone and arranged to meet him at his home. Upon his arrival, agents read him of his Miranda rights.

Morales invoked his right to have an attorney present during questioning and declined to make any statements, according to legal papers.

The FDLE concluded that the written threat expressed an intention to inflict harm and caused reasonable alarm.

Morales was arrested and charged accordingly. If convicted, he faces up to 15 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.