A Michigan man will spend a year in prison after pleading guilty to making threatening online comments toward Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.
Christopher Ray Plyler, 43, of Grand Haven, was sentenced to one year in prison for communicating an interstate threat, according to Timothy VerHey, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Michigan.
According to federal officials, between November 2026 and January 2026, Plyler posted a dozen threatening comments on YouTube videos about civil unrest in Minneapolis. In one of those posts, federal prosecutors say Plyler mentioned using chemical gas to attack ICE agents.
Federal investigators say that Plyler searched Google for instructions on making hazardous chemical gases and the home addresses of a former Secretary of Homeland Security.
In May 2026, federal prosecutors say Plyler pleaded guilty to posting a message that read, "Let them come I'm ready to kill ICE Nazis and make them pay with their lives the war is on."
"Threatening federal officers for doing their job will not be tolerated in this district," VerHey said.
"There is a clear line between expressing an opinion and threatening to kill federal law enforcement officers. Crossing that line has consequences," added Jennifer Runyan, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Detroit Field Office.
During Plyler's sentencing, Chief U.S. District Judge Hala Y. Jarbou said, "As an American, you have an absolute right to speak out, but there's a line you can't cross," and "threats will not be tolerated."
Michigan man gets prison time for YouTube comments threatening to kill ICE agents
/ CBS Detroit
A Michigan man will spend a year in prison after pleading guilty to making threatening online comments toward Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.
Christopher Ray Plyler, 43, of Grand Haven, was sentenced to one year in prison for communicating an interstate threat, according to Timothy VerHey, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Michigan.
According to federal officials, between November 2026 and January 2026, Plyler posted a dozen threatening comments on YouTube videos about civil unrest in Minneapolis. In one of those posts, federal prosecutors say Plyler mentioned using chemical gas to attack ICE agents.
Federal investigators say that Plyler searched Google for instructions on making hazardous chemical gases and the home addresses of a former Secretary of Homeland Security.
In May 2026, federal prosecutors say Plyler pleaded guilty to posting a message that read, "Let them come I'm ready to kill ICE Nazis and make them pay with their lives the war is on."
"Threatening federal officers for doing their job will not be tolerated in this district," VerHey said.
"There is a clear line between expressing an opinion and threatening to kill federal law enforcement officers. Crossing that line has consequences," added Jennifer Runyan, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Detroit Field Office.
During Plyler's sentencing, Chief U.S. District Judge Hala Y. Jarbou said, "As an American, you have an absolute right to speak out, but there's a line you can't cross," and "threats will not be tolerated."
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