Secret Service says it busted 'nefarious' network capable of crippling NYC cellphone system, linked to 'nation-state' threats
The U.S. Secret Service claims to have discovered and dismantled a massive telecommunications network in the New York tristate area. Investigators warned the network posed a serious potential threat to New York City's telecommunications and was a possible disturbance to the United Nations General Assembly meetings this week.
The concerning devices were concentrated within 35 miles of the United Nations General Assembly, which is currently under way in New York City. The Secret Service said the location of the devices had "potential for significant disruption to New York telecommunications."
'Early analysis shows the network was used for communication between foreign governments and individuals known to US law enforcement, including members of known organized crime gangs, drug cartels, and human trafficking rings, according to multiple officials briefed on the investigation.'
The U.S. Secret Service said in a statement on Tuesday, "The U.S. Secret Service dismantled a network of electronic devices located throughout the New York tristate area that were used to conduct multiple telecommunications-related threats directed towards senior U.S. government officials, which represented an imminent threat to the agency's protective operations."
The Secret Service discovered more than 300 co-located SIM servers and 100,000 SIM cards across multiple sites.
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The Secret Service noted, "In addition to carrying out anonymous telephonic threats, these devices could be used to conduct a wide range of telecommunications attacks. This includes disabling cell phone towers, enabling denial of services attacks, and facilitating anonymous, encrypted communication between potential threat actors and criminal enterprises."
The devices are undergoing a forensic examination, but investigators' early analysis indicates "cellular communications between nation-state threat actors and individuals that are known to federal law enforcement."
Matt McCool — the special agent in charge of the Secret Service's New York field office — explained in a video released on Tuesday that the investigation began "following multiple telecommunications-related imminent threats directed towards senior U.S. government officials this spring."
McCool stressed that the devices were "capable of carrying out nefarious telecommunications attacks."
“These devices allowed anonymous encrypted communications between potential threat actors and criminal enterprises, enabling criminal organizations to operate undetected," McCool added.
McCool noted, "This network had the potential to disable cellphone towers and essentially shut down the cellular network in New York City."
McCool stressed that the recovered devices no longer pose any threat to the New York tristate area.
McCool said there have yet to be any arrests in the case.
"We will continue working towards identifying those responsible and their intent, including whether their plan was to disrupt the U.N. General Assembly and communications of government and emergency personnel during the official visit of world leaders in and around New York City," McCool said.
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An anonymous official briefed on the investigation told CBS News that the sophisticated network was "well-organized and well-funded," and "could text message the entire country within 12 minutes."
CBS News reported, "Early analysis shows the network was used for communication between foreign governments and individuals known to U.S. law enforcement, including members of known organized crime gangs, drug cartels, and human trafficking rings, according to multiple officials briefed on the investigation."
"Each SIM basically has the equivalent data of a cell phone," an official informed CBS News. "So we're working through every call, every text, every search made on those SIM cards."
U.S. Secret Service Director Sean Curran stated, "The potential for disruption to our country's telecommunications posed by this network of devices cannot be overstated. The U.S. Secret Service's protective mission is all about prevention, and this investigation makes it clear to potential bad actors that imminent threats to our protectees will be immediately investigated, tracked down, and dismantled."
The investigation was led by the U.S. Secret Service's Advanced Threat Interdiction Unit, a new unit of the agency with a mission of "disrupting the most significant and imminent threats to our protectees."
The Secret Service noted that the investigation was aided by the Department of Homeland Security's Homeland Security Investigations, the Department of Justice, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, the NYPD, as well as other state and local law enforcement partners.
The Secret Service said the investigation is ongoing.
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Armed man arrested at Charlie Kirk memorial site while posing as law enforcement
A man who claimed to be a member of a law enforcement agency was arrested at State Farm Stadium on Saturday.
The memorial for Charlie Kirk is being held at the football stadium in Glendale, Arizona, on Sunday. The stadium is already buzzing with security, as the event is said to be dealing with a Super Bowl level of media interest and attendance.
'The individual is not a member of authorized law enforcement ...'
While local officials have said that security teams have had to be pulled together in record time, law enforcement on the ground appears to be effective so far.
One man has already been arrested after he was reportedly exhibiting strange behavior at the stadium.
"The U.S. Secret Service, in coordination with local law enforcement in Glendale, Arizona, is investigating an individual who was observed exhibiting suspicious behavior at State Farm Stadium," a Secret Service spokesperson said, per MSNBC.
"The individual was approached by Secret Service and stated during the encounter that he was a member of law enforcement and that he was armed," the spokesperson continued.
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"The individual is not a member of authorized law enforcement working the event and is currently in custody. The U.S. Secret Service and local law enforcement are investigating the circumstance as to why he was at the location," the spokesperson added.
While NBC correspondent Jay Gray stated that the man remained in custody, The Hill reported that authorities "suggested" that the man was charged by the Arizona Department of Public Safety but that it is unclear whether he is still in custody.
Gray went on to confirm that security around the stadium is indeed comparable to that of a Super Bowl and is, "at that level already" ahead of the 2 p.m. ET start time on Sunday.
MSNBC reported that security consists of a mix of local and federal law enforcement, with drones and hundreds of cameras — approximately 300 — positioned around the stadium.
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Kirk's murder has sent shock waves across the world, drawing heaps of praise and, unfortunately, criticisms as well.
Earlier this week, talk show host Jimmy Kimmel had his late-night program suspended by ABC over remarks he made about Kirk's alleged killer. Sinclair Broadcast Group was set to replace ABC programming with an hour-long documentary about Kirk's life. However, Sinclair, the largest owner of ABC-affiliated television stations, backed out of airing the tribute on Friday.
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DC grand juries prove unwilling to indict radicals accused of threatening to kill Trump
Nathalie Rose Jones of Lafayette, Indiana, was arrested in Washington, D.C., last month for allegedly threatening to kill President Donald Trump and transmitting threats across state lines.
Jeanine Pirro, the U.S. attorney for D.C., indicated that "justice will be served"; however, an Obama judge and a grand jury comprising Washington residents evidently had other plans.
'The government may intend to try again to obtain an indictment, but the evidence has not changed.'
U.S. District Court Chief Judge James Boasberg, whom Attorney General Pam Bondi slapped in July with a misconduct complaint "for making improper public comments about President Trump and his administration," overruled a magistrate judge last week and ordered Jones' release.
Boasberg told Jones, who recently participated in an anti-Trump protest outside the White House, to drive to New York City and meet with her psychiatrist.
Jones' attorneys revealed in a Monday court filing that a D.C. grand jury declined to indict her.
"The Honorable James E. Boasberg reversed the detention order on August 25, 2025, and released Ms. Jones to home detention," wrote the attorneys. "One of the factors the court considered in determining the conditions of release was the nature of the case and the weight of the evidence. A grand jury has now found no probable cause to indict Ms. Jones on the charged offenses."
"Given that finding, the weight of the evidence is weak," continued the attorneys. "The government may intend to try again to obtain an indictment, but the evidence has not changed and no indictment is likely."
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The Department of Justice noted that among the 49-year-old woman's many alleged threats against the president was a statement on social media indicating a willingness to "sacrificially kill this POTUS by disemboweling him and cutting out his trachea."
Prosecutors claimed that Jones — who a friend indicated in a character reference had spent some time in the Army Reserve — also said she "would take the president's life and would kill him at 'the compound' if she had to, that she had a 'bladed object,' which she said was the weapon she would use to 'carry out her mission of killing' the president, and that she wanted to 'avenge all the lives lost during the COVID-19 pandemic,' which she attributed to President Trump’s administration and its position on vaccinations."
In recent years, others have been indicted and ultimately convicted for far less graphic threats against Democrat presidents.
'The system here is broken on many levels.'
On Thursday, 20-year-old Troy Kelly of New York was convicted for threatening former President Joe Biden. Kelly said in response to a Biden post on social media that he was "gonna put a bullet in your head if I ever catch you."
Cody McCormick of Kansas was sentenced last year to nearly two years in prison for writing, "I will get a Greyhound bus ticket and go and shoot him," in reference to Biden.
Brandon Correa was sentenced in 2015 to 18 months in prison for posting a social media message directed to former President Barack Obama that said, "Im [sic] coming to watch you die."
Pirro said in a statement to Fox News, "A Washington, D.C., grand jury refused to indict someone who threatened to kill the president of the United States. Her intent was clear, traveling through five states to do so."
"She even confirmed the same to the U.S. Secret Service. This is the essence of a politicized jury. The system here is broken on many levels," continued Pirro. "Instead of the outrage that should be engendered by a specific threat to kill the president, the grand jury in D.C. refuses to even let the judicial process begin. Justice should not depend on politics."
'I'm going to f**k your ass up.'
Blaze News has reached out to Pirro's office for additional comment as well as to the White House and the U.S. Secret Service. When pressed for comment, the USSS referred Blaze News to Pirro's office.
D.C. residents have repeatedly signaled an unwillingness to hold accountable those who allegedly threaten Trump or attack the federal agents keeping their city safe.
DOJ prosecutors recently told a magistrate judge that a grand jury also refused to indict Edward Alexander Dana, who is similarly accused of threatening President Trump, reported the Associated Press.
D.C. police responding to a report of destruction at a restaurant in the northwest of the city arrested Dana on Aug. 17. According to the U.S. Secret Service's affidavit in support of a criminal complaint, Dana allegedly told an officer wearing a body camera that he was affiliated with the Russian mafia and said, "I'm going to find out who you are, where you live, who you're married to, if any. ... I'm going to make sure that many people, not just me, come after you. ... I'm going to f**k your ass up."
The affidavit indicated that Dana then proceeded to threaten Trump's life, allegedly stating, "I'm not going to tolerate fascism. You see, I was adopted [inaudible] to protect the Constitution by any means necessary. And that means killing you, Officer, killing the president, killing anyone who stands in the way of our Constitution."
D.C. grand juries also recently refused to indict:
- Alvin Summers, an individual accused of fleeing from a U.S. Park Police officer who asked to see his identification, then assaulting the officer during a subsequent arrest attempt;
- Sidney Lori Reid, a D.C. resident charged in July with an alleged assault on an FBI agent who was assisting with the transfer of an alleged international gang member at the D.C. Central Detention Facility; and
- Sean Dunn, the former DOJ employee who was caught on video allegedly throwing a submarine sandwich at a Customs and Border Protection officer on Aug. 10.
Obama-appointed Judge Boasberg releases woman who allegedly threatened to kill President Trump
U.S. District Court Chief Judge James Boasberg, an Obama-appointed federal judge who has been working ardently to block the MAGA agenda, ordered the release last week of a woman accused of repeatedly threatening President Donald Trump's life.
Nathalie Rose Jones of Lafayette, Indiana, was arrested in Washington, D.C., on Aug. 16 and charged with threatening to take the life of, kidnap, or inflict bodily harm upon the president and with transmitting threats across state lines.
'Any threat to the president's life should be taken incredibly seriously.'
"Threatening the life of the president is one of the most serious crimes and one that will be met with swift and unwavering prosecution. Make no mistake — justice will be served," U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro said in a statement.
According to the Justice Department, members of the U.S. Secret Service observed a series of increasingly concerning posts made on Instagram and Facebook between Aug. 2 and Aug. 15 by a user with the handle "nath.jones."
The user started off parroting Democrat and liberal media talking points, allegedly labeling the president a terrorist and referring to his administration as a dictatorship.
However, on Aug. 6, "Nath.Jones" allegedly wrote in a Facebook post directed at the FBI, "I am willing to sacrificially kill this POTUS by disemboweling him and cutting out his trachea with Liz Cheney and all The Affirmation present."
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The same user followed up the apparent death threat with an Aug. 14 post directed to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, in which she allegedly wrote, "Please arrange the arrest and removal ceremony of POTUS Trump as a terrorist on the American People from 10-2pm at the White House on Saturday, August 16th, 2025."
The U.S. Secret Service met with Jones on Aug. 15 and conducted a voluntary interview during which she allegedly called Trump a "terrorist" and a "Nazi" and allegedly said that if afforded the opportunity, she would kill the president.
The DOJ noted further that Jones said she "would take the president's life and would kill him at 'the compound' if she had to, that she had a 'bladed object,' which she said was the weapon she would use to 'carry out her mission of killing' the president, and that she wanted to 'avenge all the lives lost during the COVID-19 pandemic,' which she attributed to President Trump’s administration and its position on vaccinations."
The day after her interview, Jones took part in a protest outside the White House, during which she told NewsNation, "This regime has to go, the whole administration."
Jones added, "We will not exist in this authoritarian regime. We will not accept fascism."
The U.S. Secret Service interviewed Jones a second time after the protest. Jones allegedly admitted to the USSS that she threatened Trump's life during their previous interview.
Jones appears to be among the many American liberals who think that violence against their political opponents, Trump in particular, is justified.
A survey conducted by the Network Contagion Research Institute and Rutgers University's Social Perception Lab revealed in April that 55% of respondents who identified as left of center said that assassinating President Trump would be at least somewhat justified.
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A poll conducted by Scott Rasmussen's RMG Research immediately following the alleged September 2024 attempt on Trump's life at his golf course in West Palm Beach, Florida, found that 28% of Democrats said it would have been better for the president to have been slaughtered on the green.
Jones was arrested after her second interview with the USSS and apparently confirmed that she had made the threatening statements as "Nath Jones" on social media.
"Special Agents from New York and Washington, D.C., working in close coordination with prosecutors from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, acted swiftly and decisively to neutralize this alleged threat before it could escalate," said Matt McCool, special agent in charge of the U.S. Secret Service's Washington Field Office.
Boasberg, whom Attorney General Pam Bondi slapped in July with a misconduct complaint "for making improper public comments about President Trump and his administration," ordered Jones' release on Wednesday.
Boasberg remanded Jones to the custody of her defense investigator, Tyrees Smith, and told her to "drive directly to New York City, taking only reasonable rests along the way and arriving in New York City to meet with her psychiatrist prior to 5 p.m. on August 27, 2025."
When pressed for comment about Jones' release, White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson said in a statement to Blaze News, "Any threat to the president's life should be taken incredibly seriously — now more than ever considering President Trump has survived not one, but two, attempts on his life."
"This should be common sense for anyone dealing with deranged individuals who make these types of threats," added Jackson.
The Obama judge's decision to cut Jones loose comes just weeks after a federal appeals court threw out Boasberg's bid to pursue criminal contempt for Trump administration officials who deported illegal aliens to El Salvador.
Liz Wheeler of "The Liz Wheeler Show" noted earlier this year that Boasberg was a member of the "FISA court that rubber-stamped the illegal spy warrants against Trump during the Russiagate hoax. Boasberg was one of those judges signing off on it. 'You go ahead and spy on Trump.'"
Boasberg also kept Kevin Clinesmith — the former FBI attorney who, according to the DOJ, fabricated evidence to support a surveillance application to the same FISA court, lying about Carter Page's past cooperation with the CIA — out of jail.
The Obama judge gave Clinesmith only 12 months of probation and 400 hours of community service.
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Americans Shouldn’t Have To Pay For Secret Service To Follow Kamala Around On Her Book Tour
You won’t hear it from the corporate media, but former Vice President Kamala Harris has already had a longer Secret Service detail than other former vice presidents. President Donald Trump ended that on Friday before she could leech more American taxpayer dollars on a multi-city book tour to talk about her failed presidential campaign. Former […]
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