NYPD goes after OWS protester's tweet
New York Police are investigating an alleged online threat to murder police officers in support for the Occupy Wall Street movement.
An individual with the Twitter handle “Smackema1,” tweeted on Saturday “we won’t make a difference if we don’t kill a cop or 2.”Over the weekend the Occupy movement hit the six month mark in which hundreds of protestors gather in Lower Manhattan to show the world Occupy Wall Street isn’t dead.As protestors marched to Zuccotti Park, NYPD cracked down on the demonstration arresting several individuals and later in the evening cops moved in on the public space in an attempt to shut down the park.According to reports, police cleared the park arresting 73 protesters who tried to stay overnight Saturday.Aaron Black, a protester at the six month march, told the Daily News they had planned on being there for a 24 hour period, but cops started “using their clubs and beating the crap out of people.”The images which played out on a Ustream live feed prompted the comment under question.The remark was posted at approximately 11:39 pm that night on the popular social media site.Now in an attempt to end such threats, the NYPD is looking for a subpoena to find the person behind the Twitter account and bring that someone to justice.The man responsible for the tweet spoke to the Daily News on the condition that they would not reveal his identity.According to the Daily News, the Florida based activist stays current on all OWS matters and protests online but has yet to do so in person.The nameless individual claims that the message was just a prank that was taken too seriously.“It’s not like I meant anything of it, I’m in Florida, what am I going to do,” he said.But the unknown man in Florida isn’t the only one being sought after by police.Earlier this year, authorities took the threats to destroy America seriously after a British tourist joked about his trip to the states on Twitter as well."Free this week, for quick gossip/prep before I go and destroy America,"Leigh Van Bryan tweeted.Bryan’s tweet made it to the US Department of Homeland Security and the feds were waiting for him and his travel buddies at the Los Angeles International Airport.Bryan was jailed for 12 hours and sent back to Britain.According to officials, law enforcement is also tracking down phone calls where threats to two officers were made and the threats included family members. The calls were made on the same day the Florida man made his tweet public.
