Trump-Pardoned Jan 6 Rioter Charged With Threatening to Kill Top Democrat

Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call via AP Images

A January 6 rioter pardoned by President Donald Trump has been charged with allegedly threatening to kill House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY).

According to a court document obtained by Reuters, 34-year-old Christopher Moynihan made the threats via text message. In the messages, Moynihan told the recipient about an upcoming event that Jeffries was scheduled to attend. From there, he explicitly stated his desire to kill him:

“Hakeem Jeffries makes a speech in a few days in NYC I cannot allow this terrorist to live. … Even if I am hated he must be eliminated. … I will kill him for the future,” the text messages read, according to the complaint, dated Saturday.

The messages were sent on Friday, it said.

“These text messages placed the recipient in reasonable fear of the imminent murder and assassination of Hakeem Jeffries by the defendant,” the complaint said.

As noted by Reuters, Moynihan was sentenced to 21 months in prison in February 2023 for storming the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Leading into the 2024 election, one of Trump’s biggest promises was to pardon the nearly 1,600 people who were convicted for participating in the riot. Within his first few days back in the Oval Office, the president kept his word for nearly all of them, including those who physically attacked police officers.