A man pardoned by President Donald Trump for his role in the January 6 Capitol riot was arrested for making death threats against top House Democrat Hakeem Jeffries.
Christopher Moynihan was taken into cusoty on Sunday after texting someone about his plans to ‘eliminate’ House Minority Leader Jeffries, the top liberal lawmaker in the House of Representatives, during his planned remarks in New York City this week, according to court documents first reported by CBS News.
‘Hakeem Jeffries makes a speech in a few days in NYC I cannot allow this terrorist to live,’ Moynihan, 34, allegedly wrote in a court filing submitted by prosecutors
‘Even if I am hated, he must be eliminated, I will kill him for the future,’ he allegedly said in text messages sent on Friday.
The criminal complaint, dated on Sunday, stated: ‘These text messages placed the recipient in reasonable fear of the imminent murder and assassination of Hakeem Jeffries by the defendant.’
Jeffries addressed the Economic Club of New York on Monday.
Moynihan is charged with making a terrorist threat to kill a congressman, a felony, and was arraigned on Tuesday. He pleaded not guilty.
According to a press release from the New York state government, state authorities in Poughkeepsie, along with FBI agents, arrested Moynihan after they received a tip on October 18 about the man’s sinister plans.
Christopher Moynihan, in white, a man pardoned by President Donald Trump for his role in the 2021 Capitol riot, has been charged with threatening to kill the top Democrat in the US House of Representatives
Moynihan allegedly texted that he had to ‘eliminate’ top House Democrat Hakeem Jeffries
Jeffries is the top Democrat in the House of Representatives and has served as a New York lawmaker since 2013
Moynihan is scheduled to appear in court on Thursday, October 23.
The J6er was previously sentenced to 21 months in prison for obstructing an official proceeding to certify the 2020 election results.
He broke into the Capitol building before later stumbling into the historic Senate chamber.
‘While in the Senate Chamber, Moynihan paged through a notebook on top of a Senator’s desk, taking out papers, and taking pictures with his cellphone. While looking through the papers, he said, “There’s gotta be something in here we can f—- use against these —-bags,”‘ the DOJ said in a 2023 announcement about Moynihan’s charges.
Trump pardoned Moynihan, along with roughly 1,600 people charged with crimes related to the January 6 riot earlier this year.
‘I am grateful to state and federal law enforcement for their swift and decisive action to apprehend a dangerous individual who made a credible death threat against me with every intention to carry it out,’ Jeffries said in a statement.
‘Unfortunately, our brave men and women in law enforcement are being forced to spend their time keeping our communities safe from these violent individuals who should never have been pardoned,’ the Democrat’s statement continued.
Moynihan is not the first J6er pardoned by Trump to have been re-arrested.
Moynihan at the January 6 Capitol riot
Moynihan pictured next to the ‘QAnon shaman’ Jacob Chansley, pictured in the headdress
An analysis from Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington in June found that at least 10 January 6th defendants pardoned by Trump have been apprehended again.
Their crimes include plotting the murder of FBI agents, child sexual assault, possession of sexual abuse material and more, according to the watchdog.
