A North Carolina man was arrested for allegedly threatened FEMA employees but reports of an ‘armed militia’ coming for them turned out to be false.
William Jacob Parsons, 44, of Bostic, a small community about 60 miles west of Charlotte, allegedly made a comment ‘about possibly harming’ employees in the hard-hit areas of Lake Lure and Chimney Rock, in the North Carolina mountains.
Authorities got a description of a suspect’s vehicle and license plate and later identified him but it turned out to not be reports of a militia.
Some conservatives on social media took the position that the employees were just dodging work, as the government response to Helene is targeted by runaway disinformation.
One person on social media asked: ‘FEMA workers just want time off for Columbus Day?’
‘Defund FEMA and give the money back to the states. Same could be said for most government agencies.’
Another social media user laughed at the notion of a militia and wrote: ‘That’s known as land owners not wanting strangers on their land.’
‘If we can’t fire them it doesn’t mean we can’t relocate them to other jobs like claims processing, clearing the woke people out of the institutions,’ added one more.
Federal disaster workers have paused and then changed some of their hurricane-recovery efforts in North Carolina, including abandoning door-to-door visits, officials said.
The threats emerged over the weekend. The Rutherford County Sheriff´s Office said in a statement Monday that it received a call Saturday about a man with an assault rifle, who turned out to be Parsons.
Sheriff’s officials said that Parsons – who was armed with a handgun and a rifle – was charged with ‘going armed to the terror of the public,’ a misdemeanor. He was released after posting bond.
Initial reports indicated that a ‘truckload of militia’ was involved in making the threat, but further investigation determined that Parsons acted alone.
Messages left seeking comment at phone listings for Parsons and a possible relative were not immediately returned.
FEMA employee Jirau Alvaro works with Daniel Mancini, doing a report on the damage to his property
In a Facebook post, Ashe County Sheriff B. Phil Howell said FEMA put some work on hold as it assessed the threats.
‘Stay calm and steady during our recovery, help folks and please don´t stir the pot,’ Howell wrote Sunday.
FEMA confirmed in a statement Monday that it adjusted operations. It emphasized that disaster-recovery centers remain open and that FEMA continues ‘to help the people of North Carolina with their recovery.’
Workers from the agency’s disaster-assistance teams – who help survivors apply for FEMA aid and connect them with additional state and local resources – have stopped going door to door and instead are working from fixed locations while the potential threats are assessed, a person familiar with the matter told The Associated Press.
The person spoke on condition of anonymity because they could not publicly discuss details of the operations.
The person stressed that FEMA was making the adjustments ‘out of an abundance of caution.’
FEMA did not immediately provide details on the threats.
Gov. Roy Cooper´s staff said that his office was aware of ‘reports of threats to response workers on the ground,’ as well as ‘significant misinformation online.’
Cooper directed state law enforcement officials to work with local authorities to identify ‘the specific threats and rumors.’
FEMA continues to get pummeled for its slow ‘DMV-like’ Hurricane Helene response.
Last week, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas made the shock announcement that the disaster emergency fund for hurricanes may soon run dry.
Since then, Republicans have claimed that FEMA’s money allocated for illegal migrant housing should go to Americans in distress while Democrats say the money was never for hurricane relief use and is not transferable.
As FEMA has been repeatedly lambasted for its Helene response, another massive storm is barreling towards Florida’s west coast and more destruction is expected.
All while funds for FEMA’s non-citizen-only Shelter and Service Program – which has received over $1 billion since 2022 – remain unavailable to Americans.
Over the last two years, FEMA has received more than $1 billion taxpayer dollars to specifically support illegal migrants with housing and humanitarian services.
The program to provide shelters for non-citizens has seen its budget nearly double from $363.8 million in 2023 to $650 million 2024.
Additionally, $780 million of FEMA’s Emergency Food and Shelter Program has been allocated for non-citizens since 2022.