UFC Fighter and Special Forces soldier Tim Kennedy has confirmed he is working with the FBI, who are investigating threats made to him by ISIS.
The 36-year-old made a statement on his official Facebook page on Wednesday saying: "Just spoke with the FBI regarding some recent credible threats towards me by #ISIS They were not overly thrilled with my response... 'Let those cowards come.'"
Per Michelle Tan of the Army Times, Kennedy—formerly of the 7th Special Forces Group and currently a sergeant first class in the Texas National Guard—admitted he receives between five and 10 threats daily on social media. He said:
Apparently a couple of them were legitimate in trying to, from what the FBI said, plan stuff.
They said, ‘Are you aware of this stuff?’ I said, ‘Yes.’ They said, ‘We think this is somewhat credible.’ Then I said, ‘I’m kind of desensitized to this stuff, so maybe you should tell me what my level of alarm should be.’
The middleweight remains defiant in the face of such threats, though, adding:
What’s the definition of terrorism? It’s to achieve an objective through the use of force and fear. These are just nasty, evil, disgusting human beings who disrespect human life. I teach people how to live with threats like this. Who would I be to be cowering to a bunch of gutless cowards acting like a bunch of tough guys online?
Kennedy reiterated his stance on Twitter:
They can send who ever they want, as long as they don't want them back. #sheepdog #ranger #greenberet #sniper #bamf https://t.co/0RHoVZgCxi
— Tim Kennedy (@TimKennedyMMA) January 14, 2016
The pathetic/sad part is that they would never go after me. They prefer unarmed women, children, and journalists. https://t.co/v2hgHmJxjG
— Tim Kennedy (@TimKennedyMMA) January 14, 2016
The American has not fought since September 2014 when Yoel Romero broke his four-fight winning streak, and he has recently hinted he could be set to call time on his career in the MMA, but equally, he has shown interest in returning to the Octagon.
