Billy Joe Cagle posted multiple pro-Trump messages to Facebook
Billy Joe Cagle, the Georgia man arrested this week for allegedly planning to carry out a shooting at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, had spent years posting online in support of Donald Trump, the Confederate flag, and expansive gun rights.
Cagle is being charged with making terroristic threats, criminal attempt to commit aggravated assault, possession of a fire during the commissions of a felony, and possession of a firearm by a felon.
Cagle walked into the airport and was very interested in the TSA checkpoint, but was arrested before he could make it back to his truck. Police recovered 27 rounds of ammunition and his Springfield AR-15 rifle from his vehicle following his arrest.
On Facebook, Cagle celebrated Trump’s presidency multiple times. Cagle even defended Trump after the January 6 Capitol riot writing "we don't trust the news" because Trump told the crowd to be peaceful and patriotic.
In addition to his support for Trump, Cagle was also a fan of the Confederacy. In 2015 and 2016, he posted memes and messages glorifying the Confederate battle flag as claiming it was a Christian symbol.
In another post reviewed by MeidasTouch, Cagle shared this message comparing the American flag and the Confederate flag:
"Politically Correct? Both these flags are American history both established by the white race both had slavary one is being removed the other walked on burned and pissed on,"
Cagle also shared a message which portrayed himself as a responsible, armed protector. In a 2015 post, he reposted, “I stand behind you in line at the store with a smile on my face and a gun under my shirt and you are none the wiser, yet you are safer for having me next to you.”
The message described carrying a concealed weapon as a duty to defend one's own family and others if “a lunatic walks into the grocery store.” Police say Cagle, a convicted felon barred from owning firearms, drove to Atlanta’s main airport armed with an AR-15 rifle and 27 rounds of ammunition after livestreaming threats to “shoot it up.”
Investigators credit Cagle’s family for alerting authorities before he could act, preventing what officials described as a potential tragedy. His social-media history paints a portrait of a man steeped in pro-Trump and pro-gun rhetoric who once framed himself as a defender of others, but who, years later, allegedly planned an act of terrorism that would have made him the very threat he claimed to oppose.
Billy Joe Cagle posted multiple pro-Trump messages to Facebook
Billy Joe Cagle, the Georgia man arrested this week for allegedly planning to carry out a shooting at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, had spent years posting online in support of Donald Trump, the Confederate flag, and expansive gun rights.
Cagle is being charged with making terroristic threats, criminal attempt to commit aggravated assault, possession of a fire during the commissions of a felony, and possession of a firearm by a felon.
Cagle walked into the airport and was very interested in the TSA checkpoint, but was arrested before he could make it back to his truck. Police recovered 27 rounds of ammunition and his Springfield AR-15 rifle from his vehicle following his arrest.
On Facebook, Cagle celebrated Trump’s presidency multiple times. Cagle even defended Trump after the January 6 Capitol riot writing "we don't trust the news" because Trump told the crowd to be peaceful and patriotic.
In addition to his support for Trump, Cagle was also a fan of the Confederacy. In 2015 and 2016, he posted memes and messages glorifying the Confederate battle flag as claiming it was a Christian symbol.
In another post reviewed by MeidasTouch, Cagle shared this message comparing the American flag and the Confederate flag:
"Politically Correct? Both these flags are American history both established by the white race both had slavary one is being removed the other walked on burned and pissed on,"
Cagle also shared a message which portrayed himself as a responsible, armed protector. In a 2015 post, he reposted, “I stand behind you in line at the store with a smile on my face and a gun under my shirt and you are none the wiser, yet you are safer for having me next to you.”
The message described carrying a concealed weapon as a duty to defend one's own family and others if “a lunatic walks into the grocery store.” Police say Cagle, a convicted felon barred from owning firearms, drove to Atlanta’s main airport armed with an AR-15 rifle and 27 rounds of ammunition after livestreaming threats to “shoot it up.”
Investigators credit Cagle’s family for alerting authorities before he could act, preventing what officials described as a potential tragedy. His social-media history paints a portrait of a man steeped in pro-Trump and pro-gun rhetoric who once framed himself as a defender of others, but who, years later, allegedly planned an act of terrorism that would have made him the very threat he claimed to oppose.
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