New York Man Pleads Guilty to Threatening to Kill Georgia Senator Raphael Warnock

On Monday, a Queens, New York, man who is an avid supporter of the far-right Proud Boys group, pleaded guilty to making death threats against Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.) in federal court.

According to the Department of Justice, Eastern District of New York, Queens resident Eduard Florea pleaded guilty in federal court in Brooklyn to one count of transmitting threats to injure and one count of possessing ammunition after being convicted of a felony. Florea entered his guilty plea before United States Chief Magistrate Judge Cheryl L. Pollak and now faces up to 15 years in prison.

“With today’s guilty plea, Florea admits to threatening the life of a successful candidate for the U.S. Senate and to urging others to take up arms to unleash violence at the Capitol on January 6, 2021, to thwart the results of the Presidential election,” stated Acting U.S. Attorney Jacquelyn Kasulis in a written statement. “This Office is deeply committed to protecting our democratic institutions and to using all available tools to preserve the public safety, uphold the rule of law, and support the peaceful transfer of power.”

According to court documents, Florea posted threatening statements online about killing elected officials, including Sen. Raphael Warnock. He also posted statements about committing other acts of violence in Washington, D.C., on the day that the certification of the results of the 2020 Presidential Election took place.

On Jan. 5, 2021, at approximately 8:40 p.m., Florea posted online, “We need to all come to an agreement . . . and go armed . . . and really take back Washington.” In an online statement at 11:53 p.m. the same night, he also posted, “Warnock is going to have a hard time casting votes for communist policies when he’s swinging with the f***ing fish.” Florea then posted another comment less than an hour later, at approximately 12:42 a.m., he referenced Senator Warnock and stated, “Dead men can’t pass sh*t laws . . .”

Less than a week later, on Jan. 12, 2021, FBI Special Agents and Task Force Officers with the New York Joint Terrorism Task Force went to Florea’s home and executed a search warrant in Middle Village, Queens. The search revealed that Florea, who had been previously convicted of a New York state firearms-related felony, illegally possessed more than 1,000 rounds of ammunition.