Rodolfo Mienert

Introduction

Rodolfo Mienert, a 68-year-old retired New York City Police Department sergeant living in St. Petersburg, Florida, was arrested in early November 2026 and charged with one felony count of written threats to kill after detectives linked his home’s IP address to a Facebook comment threatening to behead Pinellas County Commissioner Brian Scott over the commissioner’s vote approving a local mosque’s expansion. “But Scott’s WAS, and he’s a ‘Republican’ turncoat,…off with his head!” read the comment, posted beneath a local media outlet’s Facebook post about the vote. The Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office announced the arrest and booking into the county jail; the felony count carries a potential fifteen-year prison sentence.

Background Information

Mienert spent twenty-two years with the NYPD, retiring with the rank of sergeant before moving to St. Petersburg. The threat investigation is entangled with a flashpoint that gripped Florida’s conservative media in late October: at an October 27 Pinellas County Commission meeting where the mosque expansion was discussed, a woman in Islamic attire appeared, played a recording on her phone, and was escorted out — video that was circulated nationally by commentators including Laura Loomer and Sean Hannity and by Representative Randy Fine, who wrote “deport them ALL” in reference to Muslims. Mienert attended that meeting in person and spoke during public comments, saying he had moved to “beautiful Florida” but feared the expansion would worsen traffic and hurt the environment. The woman was later identified as “a white female who wore ‘clothing as if she was Muslim,’” the Tampa Bay Times reported — a former school board candidate with a history of incidents with law enforcement.

The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation

Charged, not convicted. Mienert faces one felony count of written threats to kill in Pinellas County; the allegations are unproven and he is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.

The comment that led to his arrest appeared on November 1, 2026, beneath a local media outlet’s Facebook post criticizing Commissioner Scott’s vote. A second post from the same account showed a Scott campaign video captioned “DO NOT vote for this person, he voted FOR a mosque.” The account carried a profile picture of Bugs Bunny wielding a revolver and a bio reading “…if I pissed off a libtard today, I’m happy!! no further reply!!” On November 2, detectives with the sheriff’s Threat Management Unit received a report of the comment and traced the account’s IP address to Mienert’s residence. When detectives contacted him at home, police say he confirmed the account was his, told them he was “very vocal and not afraid to share his opinion,” and explained he had called Scott a “turncoat” because Scott, who identifies as a Republican, voted for the mosque expansion. He also reported attending the commission meeting where the woman was escorted out. Mienert was arrested and transported to the Pinellas County Jail. Sheriff Bob Gualtieri said in a statement: “Threatening to cut off the head of a county commissioner because of his vote on a land issue is intolerable and we will strictly enforce the law against anyone who makes threats of this nature.”

Public Reaction and Consequences

The arrest drew attention because of what it said about the mosque fight rather than despite it. The Florida chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations welcomed the charge, with communications director Wilfredo Ruiz saying: “Violence and violent threats targeting public officials have no place in our civic discourse, whether directed at elected officials doing their jobs or at minority communities seeking to exercise their constitutional right to worship,” and that “disagreements over zoning or public policy must never be met with intimidation, bigotry, or calls for bloodshed.” Per the New York Post, police said they had no tolerance for menacing threats against officials. Mienert has not publicly disputed writing the comment — police say he acknowledged the account was his — and no attorney for him has been publicly reported.

Current Status

Mienert, 68, was in custody at the Pinellas County Jail following his arrest, charged with one felony count of written threats to kill, an offense that carries a maximum sentence of fifteen years in prison. No arraignment date, attorney information, or plea has been publicly reported, and the case remains at its earliest stage: a charging decision with no court adjudication of any kind. The underlying comment is the sole conduct at issue — no allegation of any physical act toward Commissioner Scott has been made.

Impact on Their Career/Life

Mienert’s post-police life in St. Petersburg now includes a felony charge built entirely on a social-media comment — a case the sheriff framed as a warning that threats against officials over land-use votes will be prosecuted. The arrest also spotlighted how the mosque-expansion fight escalated: a commission-meeting disruption amplified by national commentators, rhetoric including a congressman’s “deport them ALL” post about Muslims, and, days later, a retired officer’s beheading threat against the commissioner who cast the vote. For Pinellas County’s political class, the case has become a reference point for where criticism of a public official’s vote ends and a criminal threat begins.

Sources

Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office, “St. Petersburg Man Arrested for Written Threats to Kill (26-092),” November 2026. source
New York Post, “Retired NYPD cop allegedly threatened to behead Florida politician in social media rant: ‘Off with his head’,” November 4, 2026. source
WFLA, “St. Pete man threatened to behead commissioner who voted for mosque expansion: PCSO,” November 3, 2026. source