Police arrested an armed man in connection to a “potential plot” on Representative Jared Moskowitz’s life in his congressional district and notified him of the threat the day before Tuesday’s election, the Florida Democrat announced Friday.
The suspect was carrying a rifle, suppressor, body armor, and an antisemitic manifesto that only had the lawmaker’s name on the “target” list, Moskowitz said in a statement. The Margate Police Department arrested the gunman near the congressman’s home. Moskowitz, who was reelected to a second term this week, represents Florida’s 23rd congressional district.
Moskowitz was likely targeted because he is Jewish and a vocal defender of Israel. He declined to provide further details of the plot, citing the ongoing investigation.
Margate police identified the suspect as John Lapinski, 41, who lives in the southeastern Florida city north of Fort Lauderdale. Lapinski was charged with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and other gun-related charges, NBC News reported.
“During the investigation, our detectives located several firearms and evidence that indicated [Lapinski] may have been planning some type of criminal act,” Margate police said in a written statement on Friday. No more details were provided.
Moskowitz highlighted the problem of ongoing threats against politicians on both sides of the political aisle.
“As someone who was appointed to the Task Force on the Attempted Assassination of Donald Trump, I understand the failures and importance of fixing the protection of our current and future Commander-In-Chief and Vice President,” Moskowitz said, referring to Donald Trump and J.D. Vance who won the presidential election.
“At the same time, I am deeply worried about congressional member security and the significant lack thereof when we are in the district,” he added. “Regardless of our political affiliations or differences, we all have families we want to keep safe.”
Representative Carlos Giménez (R., Fla.) released a statement, condemning the reported plot and supporting his fellow congressman.
“Political violence has no place in our country,” Giménez posted. “This violent anti-Semitic hate is despicable and must be confronted to the fullest extent of the law.”
Trump faced two separate assassination attempts in July and September, with a potential third in the works. On Friday, the Department of Justice revealed that the former president was one of the intended targets in an Iranian murder-for-hire plot. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps tasked Farhad Shakeri, 51, with “surveilling, and, ultimately, assassinating” Trump. The suspect remains at large in Iran but told the FBI of his plan.
Iranian-American journalist Masih Alinejad, who has been outspoken against the Tehran regime’s repression of women, was another prominent target in the murder-for-hire scheme. She has faced at least two other assassination plots, all of which have been thwarted. The two would-be assassins — Carlisle Rivera, 49, and Jonathon Loadholt, 36 — were both arrested in New York on Thursday.