John Lapinski, as seen in the photo provided by the Broward County Sheriff’s Office.
On Halloween last month, law enforcement arrested a Florida man with a criminal record on suspicion of weapons violations. During the arrest, authorities found several unregistered firearms and ammunition that he was not legally allowed to possess. However, what was even more alarming was the discovery of a list that prosecutors believe may contain the names of his potential targets, specifically Black and Jewish individuals.
Last month, John Lapinski, a 41-year-old resident of Margate, Florida, was arrested on federal charges. He is currently being held without bail under a U.S. Marshals Service hold for being a felon in possession of a firearm and possessing an unregistered gun suppressor. The arrest took place about 40 miles north of Miami.
Recently, new details emerged about Lapinski’s belongings, which were found at his and his sister’s home. Among these belongings were various firearms, including an AR-15 platform rifle known as Palmetto State Armory Liberty-15 and a Black Aces Tactical FD 12 shotgun. Additionally, authorities discovered two semiautomatic handguns, body armor, smoke grenades, suspected silencers, an array of ammunition, spent shell casings, and even a homemade target.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Marc Anton signed a factual proffer, which provided the aforementioned information and supported the decision to keep Lapinski in custody.
Lapinski possesses an alarming inventory of weapons, ammunition, and accessories, which raises concerns of him being a potential domestic terrorist. The situation becomes even more worrisome when we delve into the reasons behind his arrest and the aforementioned list.
Anton states that at approximately 6:30 a.m. on October 31, Margate police officers were alerted to a report of shots fired. They quickly responded to a residence where a woman informed them that she and her brother, later identified as Lapinski, were the only occupants. After careful investigation, the officers concluded that Lapinski was the individual responsible for the shooting. Consequently, they apprehended him and escorted him to a medical facility for a mental assessment. Fortunately, no injuries were reported during the incident.
Let’s talk about that list for a moment.
According to NBC,
The alleged list of targets includes Rep. Jared Moskowitz, D-Fla., as well as locations the writer of the list characterized as draws for Jewish and Black people — a synagogue, a Jewish cemetery, a Jewish sandwich shop and parks and schools that were described using a derogatory term for Black people, according to Anton’s filing. One entry on the list said, “Stalk Jewish parks,” the proffer said. Moskowitz, who was re-elected Nov. 5, thanked law enforcement for its work on the case. “Regardless of our political affiliation or differences, we all have families we want to keep safe,” he said in a statement Nov. 8.
Lapinski has had previous encounters with the law.
Officers discovered that Lapinski was convicted twice in 2005 for resisting an officer with violence, a felony, and that he was under an ongoing restraining order in a 2017 domestic violence case, Anton said. In both matters, Lapinski was prohibited by a judge from possessing firearms and ammunition.
Lapinski’s detention hearing is set to take place on November 27th.
Stay safe, everyone.
