SAN DIEGO — An ad appearing on Craigslist Wednesday warned residents of San Diego of a new attack against the gay community in the wake of the Orlando, Florida terror attack early Sunday morning.
The screenshot of the ad, applauding was sent in to the local ABC News affiliate, 10 News, and local police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation are investigating.
The ad screenshot posted on 10 News reads:
“Orlando was long overdue. Cleanse your community of the the filth that gives decent gay men and women a bad name. Those people were walking diseases, bug chasers, and thank god for AIDS and 9-11 and now Orlando. San Diego you are next …”
The source of the ad was not revealed and it was not clear if it has yet been learned as law enforcement investigates. It did appear that the ad listed the age of the poster as 33 on the right side of the page. 10 News reported that the viewer that sent the screenshot in found the ad in Craigslist’s men-seeking-men section for San Diego. The post has since been flagged and removed.
The header of the ad read, “We need more Orlando’s (sic) (San Diego).”
49 people died and more than 50 more were injured on Sunday when a Muslim man, Omar Mateen, carried out a mass shooting at a gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida. He made several calls during the attack, including one to 9-11, during which he voiced his support for the Islamic State terror group. ISIS has since credited the attacker as one of its own, though his links to the organization remain unclear.
Authorities with the San Diego Police Department and the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force are investigating the ad that the local television outlet had forwarded to them. A Special Agent with the FBI responded, calling the threat very serious and concerning, and an example of thousands of complaints the FBI receives all across the country. He did assure residents, via 10 News, that the agency would “use all lawful means available” to investigate this instance, and that there are no known, credible threats to the area at the time.
SDPD Chief Shelley Zimmerman issued a statement on the Orlando attack on the day of the mass murder that included the words, “…we are working closely with all our Federal, State and local law enforcement partners to ensure we remain safe as a region…”.
Zimmerman provided another statement in light of the Craigslist ad, acknowledging that the SDPD is aware of the post and is investigating in collaboration with law enforcement partners. She also stated that at the time no known, credible threats existed for the San Diego region, but encouraged anyone in the community that “if they see something, hear something, or know something, to say something.”
Follow Michelle Moons on Twitter @MichelleDiana
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