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N.Y. man charged with threatening to kill U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar

By Allen Cone
Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-MN, italks to an aid as she walks through a hallway in the Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. on February 13, 2019. Photo by Kevin Dietsch/UPI
1 of 2 | Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-MN, italks to an aid as she walks through a hallway in the Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. on February 13, 2019. Photo by Kevin Dietsch/UPI | License Photo

April 6 (UPI) -- A New York man has been arrested and charged with threatening to assault and murder U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar, a Democrat from Minnesota.

Omar, 37, a Somali-American elected in November, is one of the first two Muslim women serving in Congress.

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Patrick W. Carlineo, Jr., 55, of Addison, N.Y., targeted Omar because of her faith, according to a criminal complaint and accompanying affidavit filed by the U.S. Justice Department on Friday.

Carlineo made an initial appearance Friday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Marian W. Payson. He is being held in jail pending a detention hearing Wednesday in Rochester, N.Y.

The charge carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison, a $250,000 fine or both.

At approximately 12:20 p.m. March 21, a telephone call was received by a staff member for Omar, according to Assistant U.S. Attorney Brett A. Harvey, who is handling the case.

An individual, who identified himself as Pat Carlineo, said to a staff member in a phone call: "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 Justice Department said.

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In the call he said, "If our forefathers were still alive, they'd put a bullet in her head," according to the Justice Department.

He provided the spelling of his name and contact information, according to the affidavit.

The threat was referred to the U.S. Capitol Police, which began investigating with the FBI.

During an interview with authorities, Carlineo said that he was a patriot, he loves President Donald Trump, and "that he hates radical Muslims in our government," according to the affidavit.

When he was shown an email with the quote from the call calling Omar a "terrorist" and threatening to kill her, Carlineo first replied that is not what he had said, according to the affidavit.

Later, Carlineo said he may have said something like that but was unsure.

In March, the U.S. House passed with an overwhelming majority an anti-hate resolution after Omar made comments that some of her House Democratic colleagues said were anti-Semitic and offensive.

On a since-deleted post on Twitter, Omar said support for Israel was "all about the Benjamins," a reference to $100 bills. She also said supporters of Israel have an "allegiance to a foreign country."

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