Threat Against Rep. Anna Paulina Luna’s Life Leads to Jail Time

William Robert Braddock III, a former Republican challenger to Florida’s Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, has been sentenced to prison after making serious threats against her. He was found guilty of trying to hire a “Russian-Ukrainian hit squad” for the job.

Braddock faced a charge concerning interstate communications of threats, stemming from recorded phone conversations in 2024 where he made these chilling remarks. His threats were alarming enough that they weren’t taken lightly.

In one of these conversations, he called Luna a “speed bump on the road” and described her in rather gruesome terms, comparing her to “a dead squirrel” that one might encounter daily when leaving the neighborhood. It’s a vivid analogy, illustrating his intense feelings toward her.

Luna had previously accused Braddock of stalking her during their 2021 campaign and expressed fears for her safety.

During a call with a political activist, Braddock was recorded saying, “I really don’t need to end someone’s life for the people of the United States… But if it needs to be done, it needs to be done.” That’s certainly a troubling thing to say, yet it seems he never took any real steps to carry out these threats.

Luna has successfully won both the primary and general elections for Florida’s 13th Congressional District and has since secured reelection.

For his actions, Braddock has been sentenced to three years in prison.

Meanwhile, authorities noted that Braddock fled to Thailand and later settled in the Philippines as investigations were ongoing but returned to the U.S. in 2024 for his trial.

In response to the situation, Luna’s office issued a statement indicating that threats toward female lawmakers are a serious and troubling pattern. “Women members of Congress face disproportionate levels of stalking, violence, and harassment compared to their male peers,” a spokesperson pointed out, highlighting a more extensive, disturbing trend within the political landscape.