A California man was arrested Friday for allegedly posting plans on social media to kill Vice President JD Vance with bombs at Disneyland Resort in July 2025, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced Friday.
Marco Antonio Aguayo, 22, said on Instagram that “pipe bombs have been placed in preparation for J.D. Vance’s arrival” on the day Vance stayed at the theme park in Anaheim, according to the DOJ’s statement. Authorities visited Aguayo at his home later that day, leading him to surrender his phone; the FBI, Secret Service, and local police have investigated the case since.
Marco Antonio Aguayo, 22, of Anaheim, is now in the Unhappiest Place on Earth.
Today, Aguayo was arrested and charged with threatening to kill @VP Vance with pipe bombs last summer when the Vice President and his family visited Disneyland.
If convicted, Aguayo faces up to five… pic.twitter.com/5xwxURSlUk
— F.A. United States Attorney Bill Essayli (@USAttyEssayli) January 17, 2026
Should threats against public officials be prosecuted more aggressively?
“It’s time for us to rise up and you will be a witness to it,” another of Aguayo’s alleged posts said, according to the DOJ. “Good luck finding all of them on time there will be bloodshed tonight and we will bathe in the blood of corrupt politicians.”
Aguayo is charged with threats against the president and successors to the presidency and faces up to five years in prison if convicted, the Justice Department said. The Daily Caller News Foundation could not immediately identify an attorney for Aguayo.
Friday’s announcement marks the latest known criminal case involving alleged threats to Vance after a 26-year-old was arrested Jan. 5 for allegedly breaking windows of the vice president’s Ohio home while he and his family were away. That suspect has a prior vandalism record and a history of mental unwellness, the DCNF previously reported.
Aguayo “is now in the Unhappiest Place on Earth,” First Assistant United States Attorney Bill Essayli joked in a Friday X post, referring to the suspect’s custody in jail. “First Amendment rights do not extend to threats to kill or injure others, especially our nation’s elected officials,” Essayli said. “Such conduct will not be tolerated and will not go unpunished.”
“This case is a horrific reminder of the dangers public officials face from deranged criminals who would do them harm,” Attorney General Pam Bondi said. “I am grateful that my friend Vice President Vance and his family are safe, applaud the police work that led to the arrest, and will ensure my prosecutors deliver swift justice.”
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