The Department of Justice confirmed Friday afternoon that it had arrested Florida man Cesar Sayoc in connection with the series of apparent explosive devices mailed to leading Democratic figures all through the past week.
In the runup to a press conference led by U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions and FBI Director Christopher Wray, social media users discovered profiles apparently run by Sayoc, featuring clear images that matched his mugshots and violent threats to some of the same politicians to whom he allegedly sent mail bombs.
On these accounts, Sayoc received little if any interaction from people who followed him, yet he was prolific with posts (and reposts) of thousands of photos and memes documenting his life and thoughts. Over the years, he displayed a periodic fixation with gory images and conspiracy theories, and in 2018, his Twitter posts directed that fascination for violence toward many public figures who oppose President Donald Trump.
He presented himself as an entrepreneur, sharing what appears to be promotional materials for Florida International University’s Executive MBA program in January. He shared what appears to be a flyer for a gentleman’s club named “Cesar’s Palace” — which does not appear to exist. He presented himself as involved in some business with the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino, fashioning both of his Twitter usernames around the brand.
In addition to his personal Facebook page, Sayoc appeared to run at least two other profiles — though they were curated as personal, not business pages: one for a Minnesota Italian restaurant, “Randazzo’s Minneapolis,” and one for a male dancer service, “Chippen Fellas.” On the latter page, Sayoc appeared to share videos of himself working out — as well as politically-themed links, such as a Smoking Gun story titled “Al Sharpton’s Secret Work As FBI Informant.”
Breitbart News was not able to review Sayoc’s “Liked” pages on his main profile before Facebook deleted it, but his interests aside from politics are clear from his photos. Sayoc would fixate on a particular topic for several dozen uploads before his attention shifted. He was a fan of veterans, Native American culture, Brazil, scantily-clad Brazilian women, bodybuilding, MMA, and soccer.
Sayoc at times posted many graphic images of gory violence — some from jihadist propaganda. Yet he was strongly opposed to Islamic terrorism. At the same time, he was a 9/11 conspiracy theorist who appeared to ascribe blame to George W. Bush, Dick Cheney, and “Zionist forces” for the “inside job.”
Further, Sayoc appeared to believe in the conspiracy theory of “chemtrails” polluting people’s brains. He posted several memes lamenting America’s historical mistreatment of Native peoples, calling it a greater “genocide” than the Holocaust. He was a diehard supporter of Donald Trump as far back as the Republican presidential primary of 2016, and he accused the Koch brothers of planning to attack his preferred candidate with “plants,” which he illustrated with a low-res photo of two apparently black men wearing KKK hoods.
He posted several photos while attending Trump’s rallies, wearing a MAGA hat at the gym, and holding Trump-Pence signs.
Sayoc’s Facebook presence, while at times disturbing, mostly reveals what appears to be a lonely man trying to prove himself. He would often revisit younger, fitter photos of himself, inserting them into galleries of contemporary male models; take photos posing with younger women in clubs; take photos of food pictures on a computer screen as though they were dishes at his purported restaurant; and take selfies in front of businesses or Florida marinas. Where he seemed happiest was at Trump rallies, posing with other people of color who support the president.
On Sayoc’s apparent Twitter accounts, his darker tendencies went on full display. He would not only indulge conspiracy theories but accuse the president’s political foes of sending “threats” that would be “answered” by “We Unconquered Seminole.”
Ding, Ding, Ding!