Former opponent of Florida Rep. Anna Paulina Luna charged with threatening to hire hit squad against political rival

A former congressional candidate was charged over allegations that he threatened to dispatch a hit squad to murder his political opponent while he was running against Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.)

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 Russian-Ukrainian hit squad” to take out his rival.

Prosecutors did not outright name the victim, but at the time, he was vying against fellow Republican Luna and he was allegedly caught on audio calling the lawmaker a “dead squirrel” and “a f—ing speed bump in the road.”

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Braddock later fled the US to the Philippines, where he was eventually extradited. He was charged with a count of interstate transmission of a true threat to injure another person, according to the Justice Department. He made an appearance in a Los Angeles federal court on Thursday.

Luna — who recently said she had received a “very serious shooting threat” — went on to win the election in that race and was first sworn into Congress in January 2023. She previously lost that seat to former Florida Gov. Charlie Crist during the 2020 cycle.

A conservative activist had recorded Braddock making a chilling threat against the future Sunshine State rep.

“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 was heard saying in the audio, which was reported by Politico.

“That will break my heart. But if it needs to be done, it needs to be done. Luna is a f—ing speed bump in the road. She’s a dead squirrel you run over every day when you leave the neighborhood.”

Braddock initially denied making the threat in the audio and insinuated that it may have been altered. A judge later green-lit a restraining order against him.

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He also eventually dropped out of the race. Braddock is now staring down up to five years behind bars.

The indictment against Braddock comes as federal prosecutors are seeking to crack down on election-related threats and political violence during the 2024 election cycle.

Earlier this month, Luna revealed that her office received a “very serious shooting threat.” She was light on the details of the threat due to an ongoing investigation into it by law enforcement.

She noted the threat came “just hours before this threat to my office, we saw how there was a second assassination attempt on President Trump’s life.”

Secret Service had responded to the second high-profile assassination attempt against former President Donald Trump, 78, on Sept. 15 and later arrested suspect Ryan Wesley Rought, 58.

The Sunshine State Republican congresswoman also claims that she had been doxxed and lashed out at her Democratic challenger Whitney Fox for labeling her a “threat to democracy.”

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“We cannot comment on the indictment,” a spokesperson for Luna told The Post on Sunday. 

“In the past month alone, Congresswoman Luna has faced a growing number of death threats,” the rep added. “This alarming trend points to a broader and more disturbing issue of violence in the political arena.”

Luna is generally favored to win reelection for Florida’s 13th Congressional District. The House Democratic campaign arm recently moved the race to its Red to Blue program.