The man charged in the ambush and murder of two Israeli Embassy staff outside the Capital Jewish Museum in D.C. Wednesday night could face the death penalty.
Interim U.S. Attorney for D.C. Jeanine Pirro announced that the charges against the suspect in the murders of Sarah Milgrim and Yaron Lischinsky include murder of a foreign official.
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WATCH HERECourt documents describe Lischinsky as an Israeli citizen and official guest of the U.S. Government.
“This is the kind of case that picks at old sores and old scars because these kinds of cases remind us of what has happened in the past that we can never and must never forget,” Pirro said.
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SIGN UP Pirro said the case is death penalty-eligible and the suspect, 30-year-old Elias Rodriguez of Chicago, has been informed he faces the death penalty.
Charging documents carry details of the crime, including surveillance video that shows Milgrim trying to crawl away after being shot. The suspect followed behind her and fired again. When he stopped to reload, Milgrim sat up, then the suspect reloaded and fired again.
“This is devastating,” said Aphraim Katzir, who knew Milgrim. “You don’t expect to be affected by acts of terror. You know, we were at the event, we felt safe, but this is the nature of antisemitism and the current climate.”
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Charging documents also reveal new details about the suspect’s movements in the hours before the shooting.
On Tuesday, he flew from Chicago’s O’Hare Airport to Reagan National for what officials described as a work-related conference. They did not say what he does for a living. He had a legally purchased 9mm handgun declared in his checked baggage. He stayed overnight at a hotel in the District, about a mile from the museum.
On Wednesday, he later told detectives, he bought a ticket to the American Jewish Committee Event, which was focused on bringing humanitarian aid to Gaza, three hours before the event.
At approximately 9:15 p.m., he was taken into custody for the murders of Milgrim and Lischinsky.
Pirro indicated she intends to bring additional charges in this case to a grand jury.
