Peter Daniel Ring, 31, pleaded guilty in federal court last week to multiple online death threats against prominent Democratic Party leaders, Jimmy Kimmel and a Washington Post columnist.  

Ring lives in Bell and was interviewed by the FBI in New York after an email was sent to Christina Rampell, formerly an opinion columnist for The Washington Post. According to court records, Ring admitted to the email in the interview, said he didn’t intend harm and promised to stop any threats. 

The interview happened in June 2025, but a few months later, the FBI received a voluntary disclosure from Google concerning a YouTube user’s comments. The user was Ring, and the disclosure restarted the investigation. 

The threats were often comments on videos from prominent news organizations and mentioned Muslims and all democrats in general. But the comments also targeted former presidents Joe Biden and Barack Obama, Nancy Pelosi, Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Late Night host Jimmy Kimmel.  

Several of the comments occurred before the Washington Post email, but the court Criminal Complaint Affidavit showed Ring continued the YouTube threats in July, August and September. An arrest warrant was issued on Oct. 7.    

Several of the comments were in the wake of Charlie Kirk’s death and mentioned the former leader of Turning Pointe USA.  

“Every democrat needs to be killed and it will happen now that charlie died. Rules are off the table. You are going to be killed and I cant wait,” one of the comments read.  

The comments also mentioned the families of several of the individuals, including Obama’s two daughters by name.  

In the plea deal, Ring admitted to counts two and three (threatening communication). The U.S. Attorney’s Office would move to dismiss Count One at sentencing, the plea deal said.  

“My office takes seriously any threat of violence, and we have zero-tolerance for criminal threats directed toward others because of their religious or political affiliation,” U.S. Attorney John Heekin said in a press release.  

The sentencing is scheduled for April 28, and the court will determine the sentence. The maximum prison sentence for each of the three counts is five years.  

All three counts fell under the same section of the Interstate Communications (18 U.S. Code § 875(c)). 

“Whoever transmits in interstate or foreign commerce any communication containing any threat to kidnap any person or any threat to injure the person of another, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than five years, or both,” the federal law states. 

According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the case fell under Operation Take Back America, a “nationwide initiative that marshals the full resources of the Department of Justice to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, achieve the total elimination of cartels and transnational criminal organizations, and protect our communities from the perpetrators of violent crime, human and drug trafficking.”