Pardoned Capitol Rioter Arrested for Allegedly Threatening to Kill House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries
A pardoned Capitol rioter was arrested last weekend for allegedly threatening to kill House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries. Court documents obtained by CBS News said Christopher Moynihan was arrested Sunday after saying in text messages that he planned to “eliminate” Jeffries when the top House Democrat spoke at an event in New York City on Monday.
Jeffries spoke at the Economic Club of New York on Monday. According to a court filing by prosecutors in the New York state criminal case, Moynihan wrote, “Hakeem Jeffries makes a speech in a few days in NYC I cannot allow this terrorist to live.” Moynihan also allegedly stated: “Even if I am hated, he must be eliminated, I will kill him for the future,” the filing said.
Charges and Arrest
Moynihan faces a felony charge of making a terroristic threat, according to court filings shared by prosecutors. Moynihan’s father declined to comment on the case when reached by phone by CBS News on Monday. He said Moynihan has not yet been appointed a defense attorney. Moynihan is scheduled to make his first court appearance in the case on Thursday in Dutchess County, New York.
Previous Convictions and Pardon
Moynihan was pardoned by President Trump nine months ago, along with more than 1,500 other Capitol riot defendants who were granted clemency hours after Mr. Trump returned to the White House. Moynihan was found guilty in August 2022 of obstructing an official proceeding, and pleaded guilty to five misdemeanor charges. He was sentenced in February 2023 to 21 months in prison.
Prosecutors described Moynihan as being among the first rioters to breach police barricades and enter the Capitol grounds on Jan. 6, 2021. Moynihan was also among a smaller group of riot defendants who were on the Senate floor during the siege. Prosecutors argued in Moynihan’s sentencing memorandum: “While inside, Moynihan rifled through a notebook on top of a Senator’s desk, saying ‘There’s gotta be something in here we can f*cking use against these scumbags.'”
Investigation and Arrest
Moynihan’s arrest for allegedly threatening Jeffries was made by New York State Police, according to a statement by the agency that was confirmed by a state official. The investigation was initiated by the FBI, according to state police. A state police statement said Moynihan was arraigned in local court in Clinton, a town in New York’s Hudson Valley region. He was remanded to the Dutchess County Justice and Transition Center “in lieu of $10,000 cash bail, a $30,000 bond, or an $80,000 partially secured bond.”
State police declined a request to immediately release a copy of the agency’s incident report or a booking photo. Moynihan is not the first pardoned Capitol rioter to be arrested on new, separate charges. But he is the first to be charged with making a violent threat against a member of Congress.
Recidivism and Threats Against Legislators
Critics of the president’s blanket pardons of Jan. 6 defendants have warned about the risk of recidivism by rioters, many of whom remained defiant and unapologetic about their roles in the attack. The rioters have been defended and lionized publicly as “hostages” by Mr. Trump. In a March 2025 floor speech, Sen. Dick Durbin, a member of Senate Democratic leadership from Illinois, listed the names of accused rioters who had been arrested again.
The alleged threat against Jeffries is also part of a fast-growing wave of threats against legislators. In a statement last month, Capitol Police said the number of threat investigations in 2025 had already eclipsed 14,000, more than the number of cases in all of 2024. The Capitol riot injured more than 140 police officers and caused millions of dollars of damage to the Capitol complex.
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