New York man charged with threatening to kill Muslim U.S. lawmaker Ilhan Omar

NEW YORK (Reuters) – A 55-year-old New York man has been
arrested and charged with threatening to assault and murder
Democratic Representative Ilhan Omar, a Muslim U.S. Congress member
from Minnesota, federal prosecutors said.

Patrick Carlineo Jr. of Addison, New York, faces up to 10 years
in prison and a $250,000 fine if convicted, the U.S. Department of
Justice said on Friday in a statement.

According to prosecutors, Carlineo spoke by telephone with one
of Omar’s staff members on March 21 and asked the employee: “Do you
work for the Muslim Brotherhood? Why are you working for her, she’s
a (expletive) terrorist. I’ll put a bullet in her (expletive)
skull.”

The threat was referred to the U.S. Capitol Police, which
launched a probe in coordination with the FBI, the Justice
Department said.

Carlineo sounded angry during the phone call but also spelled
his name for the staff member and provided contact details,
according to an affidavit by an FBI special agent.

Interviewed at his home by investigators, Carlineo “stated that
he was a patriot, that he loves the President, and that he hates
radical Muslims in our government,” the affidavit said.

Carlineo made an initial court appearance on Friday and is being
held pending a detention hearing on April 10.

Representatives of Omar, a member of the House Foreign Affairs
Committee who was elected in November as one of the two first
Muslim women to win seats in Congress, did not immediately respond
to a request for comment.

In February, Omar apologized “unequivocally” after Republicans
and Democrats condemned comments she made about the pro-Israel
lobby in the United States as using anti-Semitic stereotypes.
President Donald Trump said her apology was inadequate and she
should be “ashamed of herself.”

Reporting by Daniel Wallis; Editing by David Gregorio