Brendan Hunt, who serves “X-Ray Ultra” on social media and on his personal website, has posted several times on various social media sites since December saying speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senator Charles Schumer and rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez were to be killed, and even called for public execution, according to the complaint.
“And if you don’t, citizens will,” said Hunt in a Facebook post on December 6. “We are not going to vote for another rigged election. Start firing squads, end these communists and let’s (sic) take America back!”
The complaint identifies Hunt as a part-time actor and filmmaker and a full-time employee of the New York State Court Administration Office.
New York State Unified Court spokesman Lucian Chalfen confirmed to CNN that Hunt worked as an assistant court analyst at the Prosecutor’s Registry Unit. He will be suspended without payment until further administrative action, Chalfen said.
Hunt, from Queens, New York, is also the son of New York City Family Court judge John M. Hunt, Chalfen said.
He was arrested on Tuesday morning and in federal court was ordered to be detained pending trial for “the nature and circumstance of the crime,” determined a judge.
The accusation comes amid increased security in Washington, DC and in state capitals across the country, as police warned of the potential for violent unrest that preceded and on Inauguration Day, especially among some far-right extremists who falsely believe Joe Biden’s election is illegitimate.
Hunt allegedly defended just that. On January 8, two days after the acquisition of Capitol, he reportedly posted a video on the BitChute website titled “KILL YOUR SENATORS”, which supposedly shows him speaking to the camera.
“We need to go back to the United States Capitol when all the senators and many representatives are there” and “massacre these bad guys,” said Hunt, according to the complaint.
“[O]Our government at this point is basically a handful of traitors … So what you need to do is take up arms, get to DC, probably the inauguration … the so-called inauguration of this communist m * therf ** king Joe Biden. .. [T]This is probably the best time to do that, pick up your weapons, show up in DC and literally just spray those m * therf ** kers … like, that’s the only option. “
In federal court on Tuesday, the United States assistant attorney, David Kessler, argued as reasons for his arrest that Hunt is a flight risk and has limited ties to the community, as well as a history of mental illness.
His lawyer, Leticia Olivera, said he has no criminal record and is not a member of any militia or paramilitary group.
“Without trying to undermine the seriousness of the allegations in the complaint, there is no claim that Mr. Hunt has a history of abuse or possession of weapons,” said Olivera. “He has no plans to travel to Washington, DC, to buy weapons or even to contact any federal official, let alone anything that could harm them.”
Olivera declined to comment further with CNN about the case.
CNN’s Brynn Gingras and Eric Levenson contributed to this report.