A former primary opponent of Florida GOP Rep. Anna Paulina Luna is facing federal charges for allegedly threatening to send a “Russian-Ukrainian hit squad” to kill his political rival.

William Braddock, 41, has been charged with making threats to assassinate his primary opponent for Florida’s 13th Congressional District in 2021, according to a Justice Department announcement on Friday.

Based in St. Petersburg, Florida, Braddock is also accused of threatening an acquaintance of his opponent. The two victims are referred to as “Victim 1” and “Victim 2” in the indictment, which was unsealed in the Middle District of Florida on Thursday.

Prosecutors allege that on June 8, 2021, Braddock made multiple threats to injure or kill his primary opponent during a phone call with the second victim, specifically stating that he would “call up my Russian-Ukrainian hit squad” to eliminate the rival candidate.

According to the DOJ, Braddock left the United States after making the threats and was living in the Philippines. He was recently deported from the Philippines back to the United States and made his first court appearance in Los Angeles on Thursday, as reported by Fox News.

🔥🚨BREAKING: Opponent of Rep. Anna Paulina Luna was charged with threatening to hire hit squad to kill Rep. Paulina.

William Braddock, 41, of St. Petersburg, Fla. is accused of making the alleged threats on June 8, 2021 — including one where he threatened to “call up my… pic.twitter.com/YWCWofOFp7

— Dom Lucre | Breaker of Narratives (@dom_lucre) September 29, 2024

Luna, a rising figure in the conservative movement, was not specifically named in the indictment. However, she alleged in 2021 civil court documents that Braddock was stalking her and had expressed a desire to see her dead.

A judge granted both Luna and conservative activist Erin Olszewski, who is also a personal friend of the congresswoman, a temporary restraining order against Braddock. Subsequently, he withdrew from the Republican primary, although he denied the allegations.

Politico reported that Olszewski had secretly recorded a phone call with Braddock during which he made violent threats. In the recording, Braddock allegedly stated, “Luna’s going to go down, and I hope it’s by herself,” adding, “For the better or the good of the majority of the people, we’ve got to sacrifice the few.”

Braddock denied the allegations in a text message to Politico at the time, claiming that the tape was “altered and edited.” He also threatened the outlet with legal action.

“This is a dirty political tactic that has caused a lot of people a lot of stress and is completely unnecessary,” he reportedly said at the time.

Luna had previously testified that she had been warned about Braddock’s threats by several acquaintances during a hearing about the scope of the restraining order.