Democrats push back against masked agents arresting immigrants, but Republicans worry about officers’ safety
Doxing has already struck a nerve among federal agents in El Paso supporting immigration operations.
“I have experienced that with one of my employees, who was photographed during an operation. It was put out on Instagram, and the individual who had posted that had indicated that ‘the community needs to remind him where he came from,’” said Jason T. Stevens, HSI special agent in charge in El Paso.
What is clearly free speech for some can translate into a threat to others.
“My employee felt such a threat that he completely changed his appearance to be able to protect his family when he’s off-duty and out in the community with them,” Stevens said at a recent Senate committee hearing in Washington, D.C.
FBI Deputy Assistant Director Jose Perez said doxing – the act of publishing someone’s private information online without consent – can not only hurt the target but also their loved ones.
“The doxing poses tremendous vulnerability,” said Perez, who heads the Criminal Investigative Division. “One example […] In this incident, the agent was being threatened also with pictures of his children to back down on the operations that are ongoing. It is a significant threat that we are concerned with.”
