Florida politician charged for threatening to call his 'Russian-Ukrainian hit squad' to kill GOP rival

An ex-Florida Republican candidate for Congress has been indicted on federal charges after a recording exposed him for threatening to kill a GOP rival with Ukrainian and Russian hit squads.

William Braddock, 41, was caught on tape saying that if it looked like rival Anna Paulina Luna was going to win the GOP primary for the 13th District Congressional seat - which she eventually did - he would take her out. 

According to the indictment, Braddock allegedly threatened to 'call up my Russian-Ukrainian hit squad' and make his primary opponent 'disappear.' 

Soon after the recording, Braddock dropped out of the race and fled the United States. He later was found to be living in the Philippines, according to the indictment. 

Braddock recently was deported and made an initial court appearance on Thursday in Los Angeles. 

Aides to Luna were unable to immediately comment as they dealt with recovery efforts related to Hurricane Helene, which has hit Florida with destructive force. 

Newspaper reports in Florida at the time about a related civil trial described alleged threats by Braddock against Luna.

'I really don't want to have to end anybody's life for the good of the people of the United States of America,' Braddock said in a conversation in 2021. 

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

Braddock said his 'polling people' were going to charge him $20,000 to do a poll before the GOP primary. 

'And if the poll says Luna's gonna win, she's gonna be gone. She's gonna disappear,' he said in the recording. 'For the good of our country, we have to sacrifice the few ... For the better or the good of the majority of the people, we've got to sacrifice the few.'   

The Tampa Bay Times had reported back in 2021 that Luna, who ran for the seat in 2020 and lost to Democratic Rep. Charlie Crist, had filed a stalking injunction against Braddock. 

'I received information yesterday (at midnight) regarding a plan (with a timeline) to murder me made by William Braddock in an effort to prevent me from winning the election for FL-13,' Luna wrote in the petition. 

In the document she also accused her 2020 primary rival Amanda Makki and Matt Tito, who's thinking about jumping in the 2022, of being involved in a plot to 'take her out.' 

Another woman, a nurse turned conservative COVID-19 whistleblower, Erin Olszewski, also filed an injunction against Braddock. 

Olszewski was the woman who gave Politico a recording of a phone conversation she had with Braddock where she said he made the threats. 

In it, Braddock makes rambling statements about having access to alleged assasins.

He said he would get help from fellow Freemasons to finance the plot and also import millions from Malta and Gibraltar.  

'I have access to a hit squad too, Ukrainians and Russians,' he said, warning Olszewski, 'don't get caught out in public supporting Luna ... Luna's gonna go down and I hope it's by herself.' 

Politico reached Braddock by text, where he refused to say if he made threats about Luna or brought up Ukrainian and Russian hit squads. 

He told the publication it was allegedly me ... there is no proof to that' saying the recording 'may even be altered and edited.' 

'This is a dirty political tactic that has caused a lot of people a lot of stress and is completely unnecessary,' he said.  

Olszewski denied manipulating the recording and said she recorded him because of his 'unhinged' dislike for Luna - who had been backed in the last election cycle by embattled Rep. Matt Gaetz and former President Donald Trump. 

Olszewski turned the June 9 recording over to St. Petersburg police and informed Luna about it, who then filed the stalking injunction against Braddock. 

If convicted, Braddock faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison, according to the Justice Department.

The indictment comes at a time when the Justice Department is trying to clamp down on threats against election workers in the run-up to November's presidential and congressional elections.