In a tweet accompanied by email and telephone contact information, the ATF wrote, “Valentine’s Day can still be fun even if you broke up. Do you have information about a former (or current) partner involved in illegal gun activity? Let us know, and we will make sure it’s a Valentine’s Day to remember!”
Users on Twitter were both baffled and entertained by the notion of reporting their exes on Valentine’s Day.
“That’s cold. And I love it,” said one Twitter user. Another added, “This is very clever! Who doesn’t like revenge?”
Others were perhaps not so amused, as one user wrote: “This is very slimy of you guys to try to twist this day for your own benefit by encouraging people to turn on one another.”
Another said, “Horrible messaging. The government should not be in the business of revenge.”
Several more users referred to incidents in history involving the ATF as they protested the tweet, including the 1992 incident at Ruby Ridge and the 1993 siege of the Branch Davidians compound in Waco, Texas, some even going so far as to say, “You gonna light my ex on fire like you did to those kids in Waco?”
A spokesperson from the ATF told Newsweek in response to a question regarding the purpose behind the tweet, “The fight to protect the public from firearm-related violence is not just up to law enforcement; it’s a partnership between our communities and law enforcement.
“We look to those who live within the communities we protect, to provide law enforcement with real time intelligence as to violent offenders. Like many law enforcement agencies, our tip lines enable citizens to report suspicious activities generally, or to provide information about particular crimes. This tweet was generated to ask our followers to report illegal gun trafficking, which directly impacts violent crime nationwide,” the spokesperson added.
The ATF specializes in reducing the “illegal use and trafficking of firearms, the illegal use and storage of explosives, acts of arson and bombings, acts of terrorism, and the illegal diversion of alcohol and tobacco products,” according to its official website.
In 2021, the ATF investigated a total of 37,494 firearm cases, according to data shared with Newsweek.
A new analysis from Everytown for Gun Safety showed that the first half of the 2021–2022 school year had the most gun violence in recent history, as there were 136 instances of gun violence on school grounds between August and December 2021.
Other members of law enforcement have made similar requests to the ATF. Earlier this month, a police department in Rockmart, Georgia, posted a Valentine’s Day request on Facebook, for people to turn in any exes who might have outstanding warrants. That post cited an cited a request from a sheriff in eastern North Carolina.
