Anna Paulina Luna's opposition charged over threatening her with 'hit squad' during 2022 primary race

William Braddock, a former Republican congressional candidate from Florida, has been charged with threatening to send a "hit squad" to kill his opponent, Anna Paulina Luna, during the 2022 primary election.

According to the Department of Justice, Braddock was recorded in a phone call with a local activist claiming he would dispatch a Russian and Ukrainian hit squad to assassinate Luna, who went on to win the election and serve her district in the US House.

Following his loss, Braddock relocated to the Philippines, where he was later extradited to the US on charges of interstate transmission of a true threat to injure another person, as reported by Politico. Braddock appeared in federal court in Los Angeles on Thursday. In an earlier report by Politico, it was revealed that the activist had recorded Braddock advising her not to support Luna, warning that he had access to assassins.

“I really don’t want to have to end anybody’s life for the good of the people of the United States of America,” he allegedly said in the conversation at the time. That will break my heart. But if it needs to be done, it needs to be done. Luna is a f*cking speed bump in the road. She’s a dead squirrel you run over every day when you leave the neighborhood.”

When the story first broke, Braddock denied making the threats and suggested the recording had been altered. A judge issued a temporary restraining order against him, though local authorities did not press charges, citing a lack of probable cause since the threat was not made directly to Luna, and Braddock did not have the means to carry out such a threat.

The Department of Justice and FBI, working alongside the St. Petersburg Police Department, investigated the case as part of the DOJ’s Election Threats Task Force. Braddock was arrested by Philippine authorities in cooperation with the FBI. He now faces up to five years in prison.