DOJ charges Rep. Anna Paulina Luna's former Florida primary opponent with threatening to kill political rival

The Justice Department charged a former primary opponent of Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., 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 the 13th Congressional District of Florida, and a private citizen and acquaintance of his opponent, the Justice Department announced Friday. The indictment, unsealed in the Middle District of Florida on Thursday, describes the targeted individuals as only "Victim 1" and "Victim 2." 

On June 8, 2021, prosecutors say Braddock allegedly made several threats to injure and kill his primary opponent during a phone call with the second victim, specifically stating that he would "call up my Russian-Ukrainian hit squad" to make the rival candidate disappear. The DOJ said Braddock left the United States after making the alleged threats and was later found to be residing in 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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Luna, an Air Force veteran and former media consultant, was not named in the indictment. While she was running for Congress, however, Luna contended in 2021 civil court documents that Braddock, a fellow GOP 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 temporary restraining order against Braddock. He subsequently dropped out of the race, denying the allegations and citing publicity from the case. 

Politico reported at the time that Olszewski had secretly recorded a phone call with Braddock in which he said an alleged "Russian and Ukrainian hit squad" could kill Luna within 24 hours. "Luna’s going to go down and I hope it’s by herself," Braddock allegedly said in the recording, according to Politico, which said it had obtained the recording in June 2021. "For the better or the good of the majority of the people, we’ve got to sacrifice the few."

In a text message to Politico then, Braddock reportedly said the tape "may even be altered and edited" and that he may bring 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 people a lot of stress and is completely unnecessary," he reportedly said at the time.

In court proceedings regarding whether the restraining order would be made permanent, Luna, who was endorsed by former President Trump twice, testified that she had only brief in-person contact with Braddock at a political event, but heard from several acquaintances that he was allegedly making threats to have her killed.

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"Mr. Braddock clearly hated my guts and wanted to hurt me," Luna said in court, according to The Associated Press. "I started getting very afraid of him. It was horrifying, and it still is."

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

Olszewski testified that she secretly recorded a phone call she initiated with Braddock in which he allegedly claimed the purported Russian-Ukrainian hit squad would respond quickly if he made a single phone call – and also allegedly made veiled threats against her three children if she repeated what he said. Olszewski said she shared the contents of the Braddock call 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 transmission of a true threat to injure another person. 

He faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison if convicted, prosecutors said.  

The case was brought in relation to the Justice Department’s Election Threats Task Force, which was announced by Attorney General Merrick Garland in 2021 to address violent threats against election workers. 

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Reached by Fox News Digital, a spokesperson for Luna declined to comment on the indictment itself but said the GOP congresswoman in the past month alone "has faced a growing number of death threats." 

"Female members of Congress are disproportionately targeted for stalking, violence, and harassment compared to their male counterparts," Luna's spokesperson said. "This alarming trend points to a broader and more disturbing issue of violence in the political arena. Violence must never be tolerated." 

Luna "is committed to spreading this message to her constituents and America," the spokesperson told Fox News Digital. "She will continue to advocate for and educate on ending the violence and abuse that so many women face, whether emotional or physical."

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