Authorities arrested a pardoned Capitol rioter 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.
The House Minority Leader 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.
Moynihan faces a felony charge of making a terroristic threat, according to court filings.
Moynihan was among the large group of Capitol riot defendants pardoned by President Trump nine months ago. In a shocking move only hours after returning to the White House, President Trump granted clemency to more than 1,500 other Capitol riot defendants.
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.
Elvert Barnes, CC BY-SA 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons
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.”
The alleged threat against Jeffries is only the latest threat in part of a rapidly growing wave of threats against legislators and political figures. 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.
Former FBI Director James Comey will no longer have to make an upcoming court appearance in North Carolina after a federal judge agreed to cancel the hearing tied to charges that he threatened President Donald Trump through a controversial social media post.
U.S. District Judge Louise Flanagan conditionally approved Comey’s request to waive the appearance after his attorneys argued he had already made an initial court appearance last week in Alexandria, Virginia.
Comey surrendered to authorities during that appearance, was formally read his rights, and did not enter a plea.
His legal team argued that federal criminal procedure rules provide “for an initial appearance in the singular,” making another hearing unnecessary. Prosecutors with the Department of Justice reportedly supported the request.
Judge Flanagan ruled that the North Carolina hearing would be canceled if Comey filed the required waiver by Friday. Otherwise, the hearing would proceed as scheduled.
The former FBI chief is facing two federal charges tied to a May 2025 Instagram post showing seashells arranged to read “86 47” — a message prosecutors say amounted to a threat against Trump’s life.
🇺🇸 Former FBI Director James Comey has been indicted on two felony charges over his controversial “86 47” Instagram post.
His response:
“I’M STILL INNOCENT. I’M STILL NOT AFRAID.”
Bold words from a guy now facing serious legal heat. The “86 47” post was widely seen as a veiled… pic.twitter.com/NUBLcsWKt9
According to prosecutors, the phrase “86” is widely understood as slang for eliminating or getting rid of someone, while “47” refers to Trump, the 47th president.
The charging document alleges:
“On or about May 15, 2025, in the Eastern District of North Carolina, the defendant, JAMES BRIEN COMEY JR, did knowingly and willfully make a threat to take the life of, and to inflict bodily harm upon, the President of the United States, in that he publicly posted a photograph on the internet social media site Instagram which depicted seashells arranged in a pattern making out ‘86 47,’ which a reasonable recipient who is familiar with the circumstances would interpret as a serious expression of an intent to do harm to the President of the United States.”
🇺🇸 Trump unloaded on Comey over the “86 47” seashell post.
He says “86” is straight mob talk for “kill him,” so “86 47” means kill President Trump.
Comey has fiercely denied the accusations and claimed the prosecution is politically motivated.
When the image was first posted, Comey later said he believed the shells represented a “political message” and claimed he did not realize the numbers could be interpreted as encouraging violence. He eventually deleted the post.
The longtime Trump rival responded to the indictment in a video statement, insisting he has done nothing wrong.
“But nothing has changed with me. I’m still innocent, I’m still not afraid, and I still believe in the independent federal judiciary, so let’s go,” Comey said.
“But it’s really important that all of us remember that this is not who we are as a country, this is not how the Department of Justice is supposed to be.”
The charges — threatening the president and transmitting a threat in interstate commerce — each carry a maximum possible prison sentence of five years. Prosecutors would need to prove Comey “knowingly and willfully” threatened to “take the life of” Trump.
The case marks yet another chapter in the bitter feud between Trump and the former FBI director, whom Trump fired in 2017 during the early stages of the Russia investigation led by former Special Counsel Robert Mueller.
It is also the second criminal case Comey has faced since Trump returned to the White House.
Comey was previously charged with false statements and obstruction tied to his 2020 congressional testimony about FBI leaks. That case was ultimately dismissed after a court found the prosecutor’s appointment unlawful, though the Trump administration has appealed the decision.
A protest at a Tesla location in Florida was disrupted Saturday when a man drove into the crowd.
A suspect was arrested at the scene and there were no injuries, according to police.
Law enforcement tells the AP that the suspect, Andrew Dutil, allegedly drove his Nissan Pathfinder at a slow speed onto the sidewalk and directly into the group of demonstrators before coming to a stop and exiting the vehicle.
Reports indicate Dutil claimed to be an employee of the Tesla showroom where the protests were taking place.
“He drove into a crowd of senior citizens,” said Mark Offerman of the Democratic Progressive Caucus Palm Beach County about the driver. “Everybody was able to move out, but two older women were really almost clipped. We immediately called the cops.”
The AP adds that “Dutil was arrested and faces an assault charge, according to court records.”
At many of the @Tesla Takedown events this weekend, organizers were passing out signs that had QR codes on them so they could recruit more people.
At least one individual associated with the group “Tesla Takedown” posted on social media about the incident.
In response to CEO Elon Musk supporting President Donald Trump during the election and slashing budgets and personnel through DOGE over the last several weeks, protests and acts of vandalism and violence have broken out both at Tesla locations and against individual vehicle owners across the country.
Attorney General Pam Bondi has labeled the incidents domestic terrorism.
A suspect accused of breaking into a Donald Trump campaign office outside of Washington, D.C. has been arrested, according to reports.
Toby Shane Kessler, 39, was detained on Saturday by the University of California, San Francisco Police Department for squatting in a campus dorm, the Loudoun County sheriff’s office said in a release on Thursday.
Kessler was allegedly behind the break-in at a Trump campaign office in Ashburn, Va., in August. He broke in through the back door of the office and spent a “brief” period of time there before exiting, according to the Loudoun County sheriff’s office.
The office is also used as the Virginia 10th District Republican Committee’s headquarters.
The sheriff’s office said that Kessler faces burglary charges, though law enforcement did not say if he took anything from the office.
“It is rare to have the office of any political campaign or party broken into,” Sheriff Mike Chapman said at the time the incident took place. “We are determined to identify the suspect, investigate why it happened, and determine what may have been taken as well as what may have been left behind.”
In mid-August, the Loudoun County sheriff’s office said Kessler has a “history of criminal behavior and appears to have been in the Washington metropolitan area at least since 2018.”
In a strikingly bizarre footnote to the tragic assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, a Utah man who falsely claimed responsibility for the fatal shooting has now been sentenced and faces up to 15 years in prison.
Seventy-one-year-old George Hodgson Zinn — who dramatically approached law enforcement at Utah Valley University, yelling “I shot him — now shoot me” moments after Kirk was gunned down — has now pleaded no contest to obstruction of justice and guilty to two counts of sexual exploitation of a minor, according to court records.
While Zinn’s initial false confession drew headlines and confusion during the chaotic aftermath of the shooting — leading some to believe he was the shooter — investigators quickly ruled him out as a suspect in Kirk’s assassination.
During questioning at a hospital after the incident, Zinn shocked authorities by admitting he had child sexual abuse material on his phone. A warrant later uncovered more than 20 images depicting abused minors, and prosecutors charged him accordingly.
In Salt Lake County district court, Zinn was sentenced to zero to five years for obstruction and one to 15 years for each exploitation count, with the judge ordering the terms to run concurrently. The exact amount of time he will serve will be decided by the Utah parole board.
Remembering Charlie Kirk: A Conservative Voice Silenced
The backdrop to this strange prosecution is one of the most shocking episodes of political violence in recent U.S. history. On Sept. 10, 2025, Charlie Kirk — founder and executive director of the conservative youth advocacy group Turning Point USA and a leading voice in the MAGA movement — was assassinated by a sniper while speaking at an outdoor event on the Utah Valley University campus.
Kirk, just 31 years old, had become one of the most recognizable young conservative figures in America. He built Turning Point USA from a student organization into a powerful grassroots force shaping Republican campaigns, energizing young voters, and challenging campus liberal orthodoxy across the country.
Gage Skidmore from Peoria, AZ, United States of America, CC BY-SA 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons
His death prompted an outpouring of grief and outrage from Republican leaders and conservative grassroots activists, who saw the attack as not just a crime but part of a broader pattern of hostility toward conservatives. Thousands attended memorial events, and his legacy has become a rallying point in debates over political violence and free speech on college campuses and beyond.
The suspect in the shooting — 22-year-old Tyler James Robinson — was later arrested and charged with aggravated murder. Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty, underscoring the gravity of the crime and the national attention still focused on the case.
What This Means Going Forward
Zinn’s sentencing closes one strange chapter in the unfolding story of the Kirk assassination, but it also highlights the turmoil that followed one of the most prominent conservative leaders of his generation. A man who tried — for reasons still unclear — to throw law enforcement off the trail of the real shooter now faces prison time for his own criminal behavior.
Rep. Dave Taylor (R-Ohio) is calling for a full investigation after a disturbing image surfaced showing what appeared to be an altered American flag — twisted into a swastika — displayed behind one of his staffers during a virtual meeting.
The image, first reported by Politico and amplified on social media by an Ohio blogger, quickly drew outrage. But Taylor’s office says it may not be what it appears.
“I am aware of an image that appears to depict a vile and deeply inappropriate symbol near an employee in my office,” Taylor said in a statement. “The content of that image does not reflect the values or standards of this office, my staff, or myself, and I condemn it in the strongest terms.”
Taylor emphasized that he acted immediately, directing Capitol Police to investigate what he described as a potentially malicious act.
“Upon learning of this matter, I immediately directed a thorough investigation alongside Capitol Police, which remains ongoing,” the statement continued.
A spokesperson for the congressman suggested the image might have been the result of “foul play or vandalism,” not any endorsement of the offensive imagery by his staff. The photo appeared to show Angelo “AJ” Elia, a legislative correspondent who joined Taylor’s office in January, sitting at his cubicle with the doctored flag visible behind him.
Elia — who recently earned a master’s degree in legislative affairs from George Washington University — has not commented publicly. Taylor’s office has not said whether any personnel actions have been taken while the investigation proceeds.
The controversy comes amid renewed scrutiny of conservative youth organizations after Politico reported on leaked Telegram messages allegedly showing racist and anti-Semitic comments from some Young Republican leaders. The timing of the leak, combined with the sudden surfacing of the photo from Taylor’s office, has raised questions among some Republicans about whether politically motivated actors are attempting to smear conservatives ahead of the 2024 election cycle.
The image was first posted on X (formerly Twitter) by Ohio blogger DJ Byrnes, who claimed a friend had a Zoom meeting with Taylor’s office and noticed the symbol. “A friend in DC had a Zoom call with Congressman Dave Taylor’s office today … Taylor’s legislative correspondent, Angelo Elia, had what can only be described as an American swastika flag prominently displayed in his background,” Byrnes wrote Wednesday.
A friend in DC had a Zoom call with Congressman Dave Taylor’s office today…
Taylor’s legislative correspondent, Angelo Elia, had what can only be described as an American swastika flag prominently displayed in his background. pic.twitter.com/zFn3QowS0c
President Donald Trump answers questions from members of the media aboard Air Force One en route to Mount Pocono, Pennsylvania, for a rally on the economy, Tuesday, December 9, 2025. (Official White House Photo by Molly Riley)
President Donald Trump revealed in a “60 Minutes” interview that a prominent Democrat approached him for a hug in the chaotic aftermath of the shooting at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner — a moment he described as unexpectedly unifying.
Speaking with CBS’ Norah O’Donnell, Trump said the night took a dramatic turn just as he was preparing to deliver a speech aimed at the press.
“I was going to hit them really hard, with humor,” Trump said, noting the event was ultimately scrapped due to the security scare. “But I couldn’t do it. I would’ve had to just get up there and say, ‘I love you all.’”
Instead, the evening became something far different.
“There was love in the room. It was amazing. There was love in the room,” Trump said.
According to the president, even longtime political adversaries softened in the moment.
“Democrats that truly can’t stand me were saying, ‘Sir, could I just shake your hand?’” Trump said. “I’m leaving, and I’m seeing high-level people, and they’re saying, ‘Sir, great job.’”
Then came the moment that stood out most.
“One of them said, ‘Could I hug you?’” Trump recalled with a laugh. “A big politician on the other side. There was love. It just all came together. It was very amazing to see. It was a very beautiful thing — at a non-beautiful moment.”
The chaos erupted Saturday night when a suspect, identified as Cole Allen, rushed a security checkpoint at the Washington Hilton and opened fire. A Secret Service officer was struck in his bulletproof vest and survived. Allen was quickly apprehended and now faces multiple felony charges.
Video released late Thursday by U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro, shows the 31-year-old suspect pacing a hallway on April 24, before returning the following evening and sprinting through security while heavily armed.
Today, we are releasing video already provided to U.S. District Court showing Cole Allen shoot a U.S. Secret Service officer during his attempt to assassinate the President at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner.
The gunfire forced the evacuation of Trump, his Cabinet, and attendees. The annual dinner has since been postponed, though Trump said he pushed to keep it going.
“I fought like hell to have it continue,” he said, adding that the event will likely be rescheduled within the next month.
In the immediate aftermath, Trump struck an unusually conciliatory tone toward the media.
“This was an event dedicated to freedom of speech that was supposed to bring together members of both parties with members of the press — and in a certain way, it did,” he said during a press briefing. “I saw a room that was totally unified. It was, in one way, very beautiful.”
For one night, at least, Trump said the divisions in Washington briefly gave way to something else.
After nearly a year as deputy director of the FBI under President Donald Trump, Bongino has returned to Fox as a contributor, according to a Monday afternoon report from The New York Times media reporter Michael Grynbaum.
His comeback was announced during the Monday night episode of Sean Hannity’s show at 9:00 p.m. ET.
Dan Bongino via Gage Skidmore Flickr
Grynbaum noted that Bongino has expressed regret at times about stepping away from his former life in media. Just weeks into the FBI role, he admitted on Fox & Friends that he missed what he left behind.
“I gave up everything for this,” Bongino said at the time.
🚨 JUST IN: Great news! Dan Bongino is headed back to Fox News –– he starts as a contributor tonight on Hannity. pic.twitter.com/V9IhW7Cvb6
First Appearance Back Focuses on High-Profile Disappearance
Bongino’s first major appearance after returning centered on the disappearance of Nancy Guthrie, the mother of NBC Today co-host Savannah Guthrie.
Speaking on Hannity Monday night, Bongino outlined three troubling possibilities in the case, emphasizing that investigators are still operating with very limited evidence.
“The first [possibility] would be, obviously, it’s a kidnapping. That was an intended kidnapping for a ransom payment…” he said.
He then explained a second scenario — that the situation may have spiraled out of another crime entirely.
“The second possibility would be this was just a crime that went awry. Someone was at the house, maybe it was a burglary, maybe something went bad, and you’ve got some bad actors committing another crime unrelated — in other words, requesting a ransom for something you didn’t do just to take advantage of a situation like this.”
Bongino’s third possibility raised an even more unsettling idea: that the disappearance may not involve a kidnapping at all.
The third possibility, he said, is that Guthrie’s disappearance could have resulted from a medical emergency or another non-criminal event that was later misunderstood or misrepresented.
Bongino Highlights Lack of Evidence
Bongino pointed to the complete absence of digital and forensic indicators — no DNA, no license plate hits, no cellphone activity, and no surveillance leads — as a major reason investigators are struggling.
He explained that when authorities cannot locate someone within the first few days, it can suggest either extremely sophisticated perpetrators or something else entirely.
“The story you’ve been told, or you may have believed may not be the story,” he said.
While Bongino declined to push one theory more strongly than the others, he emphasized that the lack of proof-of-life communication is unusual for legitimate ransom kidnappings.
He also referenced commentary from veteran FBI Special Agent Lance Leising, noting that real ransom cases typically involve rapid contact and early confirmation that the victim is alive — patterns missing here.
Multi-Agency Search Continues
Nancy Guthrie vanished from her Arizona home earlier this month, triggering a multi-agency investigation that now includes the FBI.
As the search intensified, Savannah Guthrie issued an emotional public plea, describing the situation as an “hour of desperation.”
Authorities are also investigating an alleged ransom note tied to the disappearance, though the deadline referenced in the note passed Monday night without proof of life or resolution.
Back to Media — and Still on Rumble
Bongino will continue hosting his podcast on Rumble, which he recently rebooted after leaving the FBI in December.
Fox News anchor Laura Ingraham said at the time she wasn’t surprised by Bongino’s departure, noting that he “loved his lucrative media life” and wanted to “get back to it.”
President Trump joined Bongino’s first show back on Rumble.
The president made headlines during his appearance when he said Republicans should “nationalize” the voting process in order to block “crooked” Democrat-led states from allowing illegal immigrants to vote.
“These people were brought to our country to vote, and they vote illegally,” Trump said. “And it’s amazing the Republicans aren’t tougher on it. The Republicans should say, ‘We want to take over, we should take over the voting in at least 15 places.’”
The White House initially sought to soften Trump’s remarks, but the president doubled down on Tuesday, arguing that federal intervention could be warranted if states fail to administer elections fairly.
“If states can’t count the votes legally and honestly, then somebody else should take over,” Trump said. “The federal government should get involved.”
Trump framed his argument as a response to what he described as “corruption” at the state and local level, particularly in more than a dozen states he has criticized in recent months.
In response, Sen. Edward Markey (D-Mass.) said he plans to introduce a Senate resolution on Monday denouncing any effort by a president to “nationalize” or “take over” state-run election systems ahead of the 2026 midterms.
Attorney General Pam Bondi will stop at nothing to eradicate fentanyl from the streets.
On Wednesday, Bondi revealed that she carries around a vial of fake fentanyl to show that just a tiny amount can be deadly.
While appearing on Fox & Friends from the White House lawn, Bondi discussed the importance of recent drug trafficking busts in several states that turned up massive amounts of fentanyl, cocaine, and guns.
To illustrate her point, she said she keeps a small bottle of “fake fentanyl” to remind herself how just a tiny amount can prove deadly.
“Each pill has the potential to kill a human being. A human life. An American life. I’ve been carrying around a little vial with fake fentanyl in it, the amount it takes to kill you, and it looks like a couple of grains of salt,” Bondi told Fox & Friends co-host Lawrence Jones.
On Tuesday, Bondi announced that authorities made one of the biggest fentanyl busts in U.S. history with the seizure 409 kilos of fentanyl pills and 11.5 kilos of fentanyl powder.
Bondi said that around 35 kilos of methamphetamine, 35 kilos of meth, 7.5 kilos of cocaine and 4.5 kilos of heroin were also seized along with $5 million in cash and 49 rifles and pistols.
Sixteen people were arrested in the operation. Six of the individuals are in the U.S. illegally, Bondi said.
Bondi also teased a joint announcement with FBI Director Kash Patel of a major child exploitation ring bust later in the morning, while urging parents to take notice of their children’s online habits.
“Your kids have no right to privacy on the internet,” she said, adding, “Children are getting recruited on the internet from being on games, social media or any social media platform. Parents, you’ve got to monitor what your kids are doing because they think they are talking to other children and they are not. They are talking to monsters often.”
“You’ve gotta be all in your children’s business,” Jones added.
Gage Skidmore from Surprise, AZ, United States of America, CC BY-SA 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons
Attorney General Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel announced Wednesday that 205 alleged child sex predators who preyed on children online have been arrested in the last week.
The Department of Justice will never stop fighting to protect children and we will not rest until we find and prosecute every child predator who preys on the most vulnerable.
— Attorney General Pamela Bondi (@AGPamBondi) May 7, 2025
The arrests are part of a new joint operation by the Justice Department and FBI called “Operation Restore Justice” which saw 115 children across the country rescued in the process, Bondi and Patel said.
Bondi called the operation “historic and “unprecedented.”
🚨 #BREAKING: Kash Patel and Pam Bondi announce 205 arrests of child predators this week ALONE
KASH: “If you harm our children, there is no place we won’t hunt you down—and no cage we won’t put you in.”
“These depraved human beings, if convicted, will face the maximum penalty in prison some life,” Bondi said at a press briefing.
“We will find you. We will arrest you, and we will charge you. If you are online targeting a child, you will not escape us. The FBI and the Department of Justice will come after you. And we will prosecute you.”
A U.S. Secret Service employee has been placed on immediate administrative leave after reportedly celebrating the assassination of Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk in a social media post, Fox News Digital confirmed Friday.
“The U.S. Secret Service will not tolerate behavior that violates our code of conduct. This employee was immediately put on administrative leave, and an investigation has begun,” a Secret Service spokesperson told Fox News when asked about the employment status of Anthony Pough.
Gage Skidmore from Surprise, AZ, United States of America, CC BY-SA 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons
According to Real Clear Politics, Pough had posted on Facebook celebrating Kirk’s death, accusing the conservative leader of spreading “racism.”
“If you are Mourning [sic] this guy .. delete me. He spewed hate and racism on his show,” Pough wrote, according to the outlet. He also referenced the recent Evergreen High School shooting in Colorado that left two students injured, writing, “Especially when we should be mourning the innocent children killed in Colorado.”
Pough further claimed that Kirk’s death was “karma,” writing, “At the end of the day, you answer to GOD and speak things into existence. You can only circumvent karma, she doesnt [sic] leave.”
Kirk was attending a Turning Point USA event at Utah Valley University on Wednesday afternoon when a single shot rang out and struck Kirk in the neck. He was transported to a local hospital and was pronounced dead just hours later.
Real Clear Politics reported that Pough was in “Phase 2” of his career with the Secret Service, a stage where agents are focused on protective assignments. He had not yet been assigned to any regular detail protecting former President Donald Trump. According to the agency’s website, Phase 3 typically involves post-protective field, protection, or headquarters assignments.
Kirk was shot Wednesday afternoon while attending a Turning Point USA event at Utah Valley University. He was struck once in the neck and later pronounced dead at a local hospital. He is survived by his wife, Erika, and their two young children, ages 1 and 3. The couple married in 2021. (RELATED: MSNBC Fires Analyst Matthew Dowd For ‘Unacceptable’ Charlie Kirk Comments)
Kirk leaves behind his wife, Erika Kirk, as well as their two children, ages 1 and 3. The Kirks married in 2021.
Vice President JD Vance and second lady Usha Vance accompanied Kirk’s casket back to Arizona, where he resided with his family, on Thursday via Air Force Two.
