A Queens man who told federal agents he wanted to join the far-right group Proud Boys was charged with gun crime on Wednesday after messages he posted on social media at the time of the Capitol riot generated alarms, according to prosecutors and court documents.
The man, Eduard Florea, was arrested on Tuesday after a search of his home revealed an arsenal of over 1,000 rounds of rifle ammunition, two dozen shotgun shells, 75 military-style combat knives, two axes and two swords, prosecutors said. No weapons were found.
The arrest of Florea, a 40-year-old software engineer, came amid an intense manhunt across the country against those who invaded the United States Capitol last week as part of a violent wave of supporters of President Trump that wanted to annul the election results.
Although Florea was not one of countless people persecuted for participating in the riot, the police considered him threatening enough to arrive in an armored vehicle at his home to arrest him. His lawyer, questioning the approach, described the vehicle as a “military tank”.
Among the comments that caused concern to the authorities and led to the search of his home, the complaint says, was the one in which Florea appeared to threaten Reverend Raphael Warnock, a Democrat from Georgia, at the time Warnock was declared the winner of a Senate seat. USA.
At around 1am on January 6, while posting under the name “LoneWolfWar” in a group topic about Warnock on the social media site Parler, the complaint says that Florea wrote that “dead men cannot pass laws,” obscenity added for emphasis.
Later that day, also at Parler, Florea wrote about having three cars of “armed patriots” in a “caravan” bound for Washington, the complaint says. As the Capitol revolt unfolded, he wrote that the time for peace and civility was over and that “here in New York, we are rich targets.”
“I’m going to fight, so God help me,” he added.
In a bail hearing at the Federal District Court in Brooklyn that was held remotely, Florea’s lawyer pointed out that the FBI concluded that his client, despite his online bravado, had no car and had not been to Washington.
However, the content of his comments on social media was threatening enough to increase the authorities’ interest, especially when combined with his status as a criminal, according to prosecutors and the complaint.
In 2014, Florea was found guilty of illegal possession of a weapon after a search of the Staten Island home, where he lived, revealed a stock that included a semi-automatic shotgun and an AR-15 assault rifle, a federal prosecutor said at the hearing. Wednesday
Capitol Riot Fallout
Florea legally bought the weapons outside of New York City, but she should not have them within the five districts, her lawyer, Mia Eisner-Grynberg, said at the hearing. He served a year in prison for the conviction, she said.
Florea is now federally accused of being a criminal for possessing ammunition. If convicted, he faces up to 10 years in prison, prosecutors said.
Asked by FBI agents after being taken into custody on Tuesday, Florea said he supported the Proud Boys, a far-right organization that endorsed the violence and Trump, and applied to join the group, said a federal prosecutor at bail hearing.
He told agents that he had gone to Washington with members of the Proud Boys in December and vandalized a church there, but was not yet a member of the group because he did not attend the required number of meetings, the prosecutor said.
“This is not just rhetoric,” said Francisco Navarro, the prosecutor, when he argued against bailing Florea. “This is action-based rhetoric.”
“Given his willingness to travel to DC with criminals, the government believes that the defendant is particularly dangerous in the current political environment,” added Navarro.
Mrs. Eisner-Grynberg, Florea’s lawyer, told the judge that her client did not tolerate the “behavior” that had occurred at the Capitol last Wednesday.
“You can’t condemn what happened at Capitol and hang out with the Proud Boys,” replied Navarro.
Ms. Eisner-Grynberg argued that Florea should be released from custody because he was not accused of making threats online and that many of the statements he made were false. She also said that “rhetoric was extremely loud on all sides” on the day of the riot.
The judge, Magistrate Judge Sanket Bulsara, vigorously rejected this argument.
“This is not mere nonsense,” said Judge Bulsara. “And frankly, I think it is deeply incorrect to make that suggestion.”
Supporting the government, the judge denied Florea bail.
In arguing against Mr. Florea’s release, Mr. Navarro also cited a 2014 report that cited a criminal complaint describing how Mr. Florea smothered his wife until she almost lost consciousness while holding their daughter and threatened to kill her. them with a knife.
Ms. Eisner-Grynberg said that these charges were dismissed. She also said that after much advice, Mr. Florea and his wife, who now has two children, were reconciled and that the wife had no concern that he was at home with her.
William K. Rashbaum contributed reporting.