CHARLOTTE COUNTY — Several people across southwest Florida have received threatening emails that appear to come from a group called the “Proud Boys”.
The FBI is investigating, and several Sheriff’s Offices in our area say they’ve received reports. We had the chance to speak with one woman who tells us she was frightened when one of those emails popped up in her inbox.
The email says "we will know which candidate you voted for", and it even includes the address of the person who received it.
“I felt very intimidated. I was scared. I started sweating at first. I was like oh my gosh, they’ve got my name, my address. They said they had all of my information and that they’ll know who I vote for," said the woman we spoke to, who did not want to be identified.
That woman said she did report what happened by calling the FBI.
“It was very busy and hard to get in. They had a lot of calls, and she let me know that I wasn’t the only one. They were getting a lot of calls about it," said the woman.
At the Charlotte County Sheriff’s office, they’ve been getting a lot of calls about the emails too, and that’s exactly what deputies want you to do if you get one.
“We encourage them to call us. We want to document these emails coming in so we can assist the FBI in their investigation," said Skip Conroy, the Department's Community Affairs Supervisor.
It still hasn’t been confirmed if the emails actually come from the Proud Boys, which is a far-right organization, designated as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center. The woman we spoke with said, she wants to make sure this doesn’t stop people from voting for who they believe in.
“I was afraid at first, but now I’m just, I’m upset and I want people to know that this isn’t right," said the woman.
The Sheriff’s Office also said the email included a link, which it is advising you not to click if it shows up in your inbox. Deputies said the best thing to do if you get it is to report it to you local law enforcement, and then delete it.
