A 45-year-old Portland man is facing federal charges after making vile threats against ICE officers and their families outside an ICE facility. John Paul Cupp didn’t just say these things once. He said them repeatedly. He posted them online. He kept doing it for months. And now the FBI is treating him as a serious federal threat.
This isn’t just about one angry guy. This is about a pattern. This is about radicalization. This is about the violence that’s becoming normalized against law enforcement.
What He Actually Said
On October 14, video captured Cupp making threats at officers outside the ICE facility in South Portland. Here’s what he said—and this is graphic, so prepare yourself:
“I’m going to have your head on a stick and mail it to your wife.”
“I’ll have your wife looking at your head while I f**k her.”
“His wife will love looking at his f***ing head when she gets it in the mail.”
That’s not heated rhetoric. That’s not political disagreement. That’s describing murder, desecration, and sexual assault. In graphic detail. To officers’ faces.
And he didn’t stop there.
He Kept Going
On November 3, Cupp posted the same threats online in video form. He kept the content up. He kept spreading it.
On November 13, he posted again on TikTok, this time telling his audience: “De-masculate them. Taunt them. Mock their authority. Question if they even have authority.”
He’s not just making threats. He’s recruiting others. He’s building a movement of intimidation.
Who Is He Really?
Court documents reveal that Cupp is a prolific producer of violent online content. He regularly:
- Posts aggressive rhetoric
- Makes calls for war against the United States
- Makes antisemitic threats
- Threatens violence
On social media, he goes by “Walid Al Amriki” and calls himself the “public relations director” of the “North American Resistance Committee.”
He refers to himself as Osama bin Laden.
He’s been on law enforcement’s radar for months after online tips about violent anti-Jewish TikToks, references to Islamic jihad, and rhetoric about overthrowing the U.S. government.
His Background
Court filings show that Cupp has been diagnosed with bipolar disorder. He’s been living unhoused since April 2025, when Clackamas County issued a restraining order preventing him from seeing his estranged wife and three children.
But mental illness doesn’t excuse making threats of murder and sexual assault. And homelessness doesn’t excuse radicalization. These are facts. These are choices.
The Bigger Crisis
ICE law enforcement officers are facing an 8,000% increase in death threats.
Let that sink in for a second. Eight thousand percent. That’s 80 times the baseline. In the span of just a few months, threats against these officers have increased by an order of magnitude that’s almost incomprehensible.
And it’s not just threats. Since June 13, 2025, federal prosecutors have charged 40 defendants with crimes committed near ICE facilities. Charges include assaulting federal officers, failure to comply with law enforcement, and depredation of government property.
Forty people. In six months. At ICE facilities.
What Law Enforcement Is Saying
U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon Scott E. Bradford said: “Threats of violence against the brave members of law enforcement and their families will not be tolerated. The U.S. Attorney’s Office remains committed to holding those accountable who threaten and intimidate those who protect our communities, and we will continue to prosecute criminal threats of violence to the fullest extent of the law.”
FBI Portland Special Agent in Charge Matt Torres said: “Threats to law enforcement personnel have absolutely no place in our community. Attempts to intimidate those sworn to protect the American people and uphold our Constitution degrade efforts to keep all of us safe. The FBI will use all investigative means available to us to seek out and arrest anyone using violent rhetoric to express themselves.”
FBI Director Kash Patel was even blunter: “If you threaten to kill law enforcement officers or harm their families, you will face the full weight of the federal government. This FBI will use every investigative tool we have to identify violent extremists and remove them from our communities.”
Why This Is Different
This isn’t a one-time outburst. This is months of escalating threats. This is someone who’s been radicalized online. This is someone who’s building a platform. This is someone who’s calling for others to join him in “de-masculating” law enforcement.
This is organized extremism.
What Happens Now
Cupp made his first court appearance on a federal charge of making threats against a federal law enforcement officer. He was ordered detained pending further court proceedings. The FBI is investigating. Federal prosecutors are handling the case.
He will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. But here’s what that doesn’t solve: the 40 other defendants. The 8,000% increase in death threats. The radicalization happening on social media right now.
The Bigger Problem
We’re normalizing violence against law enforcement. We’re treating threats of murder and sexual assault like they’re just part of political discourse. We’re watching people get radicalized online and only prosecuting them after they’ve made explicit threats.
By then, it’s almost too late.
What You Can Do
Report threats. If you see violent rhetoric online calling for attacks on law enforcement, report it. To the FBI. To the platform. To law enforcement directly.
Don’t share violent content. Don’t amplify it. Don’t engage with it.
And most importantly: recognize that radicalization is a process. It doesn’t happen overnight. It happens slowly, through repetition, through community reinforcement, through online platforms that allow extremism to flourish.
Cupp didn’t wake up one day wanting to threaten murder and sexual assault. He was radicalized. Someone or something radicalized him. And now he’s facing federal charges.
Don’t let it be someone you know next.
