The FBI arrested Manuel Flores of El Paso, Texas in the Dallas area for allegedly recording and publishing a YouTube video in which he said he dreamed of killing “at least 200” Black Lives Matter protesters. In the video, the 42-year-old man said he was driving through Dallas Monday and dared activists to “stop him” and claimed he had “500 rounds of something” with him. According to the criminal complaint, Flores admitted the video was published on his YouTube channel.
The video was called “(N—) Lives Matter” and was published on a YouTube account called “Don’t CA My TX,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Texas and the FBI said Wednesday, reports the El Paso Times. The investigation into Flores started Saturday after the FBI National Operations Center received a tip about the video, in which an AR-15 can be seen near the man’s feet. The man is only seen from the knees down, but the FBI said the person was identified as Flores.
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Flores is a truck driver and he was scheduled to make a delivery in Irving Monday, the criminal complaint notes. The person in the clip says he has “500 rounds of something” and dared activists to “stop me, I’m pissed and I’m tired and I’m ready.” Later, the person in the clip said his dream is “at least take out at least 200 n—, f— savages out,” the complaint states.
After FBI agents received the tip, they linked the video to Flores’ phone. They met with him at his El Paso home at 3 a.m. Sunday morning and he allegedly admitted the video was posted on his YouTube page. He told agents he had only arrived back in El Paso the previous morning and drank eight or nine beers, so he did not remember what he said in the video. Agents noted Flores spoke with a “drawl or southern twang” in the video, but he did not have the accent when they spoke with him.
“Flores stated that he loves America and is upset about what is going on right now,” the complaint reads. “However, Flores has no intention of harming anyone but would defend himself if he had to. Flores was remorseful and apologetic to interviewing FBI Special Agents.” The FBI agents were allowed to search his home and they did find an AR-15-style rifle and ammunition. He also deleted the threatening video with the FBI agents watching, the complaint notes.
Flores faces a federal charge of making a threat over the internet. He was arrested Monday and appeared before a judge in Dallas Tuesday. He is now in U.S. Marshals Service custody and will be taken back to El Paso. If he is convicted, he could be sentenced to five years in prison.
