Flanked by federal and DC law enforcement officials, US Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro laid out a nine-count indictment against Elias Rodriguez, 31, accused in the murder of two Israeli embassy staffers and the wounding of two other victims.
Pirro branded the shootings a hate crime targeting Israeli citizens and by implication people of the Jewish faith.
“He [Rodriguez] demonstrated this hatred, through his words, death to Israel and his violent actions,” said Pirro of a manifesto the suspect reportedly posted on social media.
Pirro said the case is being referred to US Attorney General Pam Bondi for consideration of the death penalty.
All the victims were gunned down at a diplomatic reception on May 21 at the Capital Jewish Museum on the 500 block of 3rd Street, NW. Rodriguez reportedly purchased a ticket for the event.
At an Aug. 7 news conference, Pirro said that Rodriguez traveled to DC from Chicago bringing a 9mm automatic in his baggage along with the manifesto on his iPhone, labeled as an “explication” calling for the “morality of armed demonstration.”
On the night of the crime, Pirro said Rodriguez approached the victims after they left the museum and fired approximately 20 shots. After the victims fell, according to Pirro, Rodriguez allegedly continued firing at close range, including as one victim tried to walk away.
“Then firing these fatal shots, he yelled, ‘Free Palestine.’ said Pirro. In the aftermath, 30-year-old Yaron Lischinsky and 26-year-old Sarah Milgrim, both Israeli embassy workers, lay dead. Both of the surviving victims are Americans.
After the fusillade of gunfire, Piro said that Rodriquez entered the museum, displaying a red headdress saying, “I did it for Palestine. I did it for Gaza,” an apparent reference to the killings of a large number of Palestinians in the Gaza war in what Rodriguez charged was genocide.
The indictment returned by a DC Grand Jury accuses Rodriguez of one count of murder of a foreign official and two counts of a hate crime resulting in death. In addition the suspect is charged with discharging a firearm during a crime of violence and causing the death of a person through the use of a firearm.
Along with those federal crimes, Rodriguez also faces two counts of premeditated murder while armed and two counts of assault with intent to kill while armed.
Pirro noted that the murder of Milgram was “ in an especially heinous and cruel and depraved manner given her infirmity.” Pirro also said Milgrim and Lischinsky planned to be married, something they and their families “will never be able to celebrate.”
All in all, Rodriguez could face the death penalty if convicted.
“This is a weighty decision, it takes time, there will be a rigorous process after which the capital case section in the Attorney General’s Office will advise the Attorney General and the Attorney General, herself, will make a decision,” said Pirro.
In the aftermath, FBI Special Agent in Charge Reid Davis said efforts were being made to assist the victims and their families.
The indictment comes at a fraught moment for the American Jewish community as a new FBI report cites an all-time high of ant-semitic attacks in 2024.
“We’re going to prosecute these cases to the full force of the law. It’s a problem we’re not going to tolerate,” said Piirro.
No further proceedings were announced in this case.
