Man pardoned for Capitol riot arrested for threatening to kill Rep. Hakeem Jeffries

A New York man previously convicted for his role in the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol has been arrested for allegedly threatening to kill House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, according to authorities.

Christopher Moynihan, 34, of Clinton, New York, was charged with making a terroristic threat, a felony, the New York State Police said in a statement. He was taken into custody on Sunday after the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force notified state police that he had made threats to assassinate a member of Congress.

Moynihan was arraigned and ordered held at the Dutchess County Justice and Transition Center on $10,000 bail or bond alternatives.

Court documents obtained by CBS News allege that Moynihan sent text messages saying he planned to “eliminate” Jeffries ahead of a Monday speaking event at the Economic Club of New York.

“Hakeem Jeffries makes a speech in a few days in NYC I cannot allow this terrorist to live,” one message read, according to the filing. Another stated: “Even if I am hated, he must be eliminated, I will kill him for the future.”

Moynihan was convicted in 2022 of obstructing an official proceeding and other charges related to the January 6 attack and sentenced to 21 months in prison the following year. He was pardoned by President Donald Trump as part of a mass clemency order that released more than 1,500 Capitol riot defendants.

In a statement Tuesday, Jeffries thanked 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 the suspect “was pardoned by Donald Trump on the President’s very first day in office” and criticized the blanket pardon for allowing violent offenders to reoffend.

Moynihan is scheduled to appear in court on Thursday. The FBI and New York State Police said the investigation is ongoing.