Florida man threatened political rival with Russian-Ukrainian hit squad: DOJ

The Justice Department charged a former primary opponent of Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Florida, with threatening to send a “Russian-Ukrainian hit squad” to kill his political rival.

William Robert Braddock III, 41, of St. Petersburg, Florida, was charged with threatening to kill his primary opponent in the 2021 election for Florida’s 13th Congressional District as well as a private citizen and acquaintance of his opponent, the Justice Department said Friday. The indictment unsealed Thursday in the Middle District of Florida describes the targets only as “Victim 1” and “Victim 2.”

On June 8, 2021, prosecutors said Braddock made several threats to injure and kill his primary opponent during a telephone conversation with the second victim, specifically stating that he would “call my Russian-Ukrainian hit squad” to make the opponent disappear let . The DOJ said Braddock left the United States after making the alleged threats and was later determined to be a resident of the Philippines.

Braddock was recently deported from the Philippines to the United States and made his first court appearance in Los Angeles on Thursday.

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Rep. Anna Paulina Luna attends a campaign rally for former President Trump at the Aero Center in Wilmington, North Carolina, on September 21, 2024. (Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images)

Luna, an Air Force veteran and former media consultant, was not named in the indictment. However, while she was running for Congress, Luna claimed in 2021 civil court documents that Braddock, a fellow Republican Party challenger and former Marine, was stalking her and wanted her dead.

A judge granted Luna and a conservative activist and friend of hers, Erin Olszewski, a restraining order against Braddock. He then dropped out of the race, denying the allegations and citing the publicity of the case.

Politico reported at the time that Olszewski secretly recorded a phone call with Braddock in which he said a supposed “Russian and Ukrainian hit squad” could kill Luna within 24 hours. “Luna will go down and I hope it does so alone,” Braddock reportedly said in the recording, as reported by Politico, which obtained the recording in June 2021. “For the good of the majority of people, we must sacrifice the few.

In a text message to Politico at the time, Braddock reportedly said that the tape “may even be altered and edited” and that he may file civil lawsuits and seek criminal charges against those in possession of the recording.

“This is a dirty political tactic that has caused a lot of stress for a lot of people and is completely unnecessary,” he reportedly said at the time.

In a trial over whether the injunction would be permanent, Luna, who was twice endorsed by former President Trump, testified that she had only brief personal contact with Braddock at a political event but heard from several acquaintances that he had Allegedly there were threats to have her killed.

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Rep. Anna Paulina Luna speaks at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee on July 17, 2024. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

“Mr. “Braddock clearly hated me and wanted to hurt me,” Luna said in court, according to the Associated Press. “I became very afraid of him. It was terrible and still is.”

“I think he’s an evil person,” she said in September 2021. “I think he definitely terrorized me emotionally.”

Olszewski testified that she secretly recorded a phone call she started with Braddock in which he allegedly claimed that the alleged Russian-Ukrainian hit squad would respond quickly if he made even a single call – and that she also allegedly hid it He said he had made threats against her three children if she repeated something. Olszewski said she shared the contents of the Braddock call, which she recorded on an iPad, with Luna, and both women called police.

In the new indictment, unsealed last week, Braddock is charged with one count of interstate communication of a genuine threat to injure another person.

If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison, the public prosecutor’s office said.

The case was filed in connection with the Justice Department’s Election Threats Task Force, which was created by Attorney General Merrick Garland in 2021 to counter violent threats against election workers.

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When contacted by Fox News Digital, a spokesperson for Luna declined to comment on the charges themselves, but said the Republican congresswoman has “faced a growing number of death threats” in the past month alone.

“Female members of Congress are disproportionately the victims of stalking, violence and harassment compared to their male colleagues,” Luna’s spokesperson said. “This alarming trend points to a broader and more disturbing problem of violence in the political sphere. Violence should never be tolerated.”

Luna “is committed to carrying this message to her voters and to America,” the spokesperson told Fox News Digital. “She will continue to work to end the violence and abuse that so many women face, be it emotional or physical.”

Michael Lee of Fox News and the Associated Press contributed to this report.