WASHINGTON — The feds have a mountain of evidence against alleged homegrown terrorist Elias Rodriguez, who is charged with gunning down a pair of young Israeli diplomats outside the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, DC, in May, prosecutors revealed.
Rodriguez, 31, appeared in DC federal court Thursday for a 10-minute hearing while wearing an orange jumpsuit, glasses and sporting a beard — just three blocks from where the cold-blooded killings took place.
A shackled Rodriguez jingled as he was escorted into the courtroom by US Marshals who removed the chains for the appearance. He pleaded not guilty to murder and hate crime charges.
Judge Randolph Moss said Rodriguez’ case would be designated “complex” due to the “massive” amount of evidence in the case.
Prosecutor Christopher Tortorice told the judge his office had 1.5 million documents, 450 MB of data and another 106MB of data from an iPhone in the case against Rodriguez. And Tortorice added there was more evidence still to come.
The accused killer only spoke to say “Yes” and “No, your honor” to answer the judge’s questions as he was read his rights.
The Chicago native — whose vicious antisemitism was forged in the crucible of far-left politics — shouted “Free, free Palestine” after witnesses and prosecutors say he executed Yaron Lischinsky, 28, and Sarah Milgrim, 26, with nearly two dozen shots on May 21.
The two lovers, who were about to get engaged, were killed as they left the American Jewish Committee’s ACCESS Young Diplomats Reception in the heart of DC around 9 p.m., where they discussed ideas for bringing more aid into Gaza.
Rodriguez had flown to DC from Chicago with a handgun in his checked luggage and bought a ticket for the event three hours before it started, according to court papers.
As the couple lay helpless on the ground, Rodriguez allegedly positioned himself over them and continued firing.
He followed Milgrim as she tried to crawl away and reloaded his 9mm pistol and shot her again as she desperately attempted to escape, charging documents alleged.
He then dropped the weapon and ran into the museum, where bystanders who thought he was a distraught witness to the attacks rushed to offer him comfort and assistance.
He followed Milgrim as she tried to crawl away and reloaded his 9mm pistol and shot her again as she desperately attempted to escape, charging documents alleged.
“He was soaking wet. He was wearing a suit, glasses, brownish-black hair. He was pretty much in a state of shock. He sat by himself. He was pacing,” Yoni Kalin, 31, a witness inside the event, told The Post.
But when police arrived, witnesses said, Rodriguez produced a keffiyeh scarf from his bag and defiantly proclaimed, “I did this. I did this for Gaza. Free, free Palestine. From the river to the sea and there’s only one solution, intifada revolution” as he was cuffed and taken into custody.
Outside court after, Heather Shaner told reporters she’s a member of the museum where the heinous killings took place and had visited it that day, before the shootings.
“Anger against individual Jews is being fanned by the rise of hate in the US,” Shaner said. “I’m tired of going to commemorations.”
Rodriguez’ indictment, which was unsealed last month, includes notice of special findings that would allow the Justice Department to potentially pursue the death penalty, despite the district abolishing capital punishment in 1981.
But Shaner noted that Judaism doesn’t support the death penalty.
“It’s against their social history,” she said. “Everyone has a possibility of redemption.”