Legal/Law/Criminal Justice and Reform

Accused Israeli Embassy Killer Pleads Not Guilty, Demands Jury

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WASHINGTON — The man accused of gunning down two Israeli Embassy staffers in Washington, D.C., disputed all his charges on Thursday and demanded a jury trial.

Elias Rodriguez, through his lawyer, entered a plea of not guilty to a nine-count indictment containing a slew of hate crime, assault and murder charges over the May 21 killings of Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim during his arraignment at the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. Obama-appointed Judge Randolph Moss ordered the prosecution and defense to submit a status report on Dec. 5 that will suggest next steps for the case, which drew national attention amid concerns about rising antisemitism.

BREAKING: Elias Rodriguez, charged with gunning down two Israeli Embassy staffers in May, pleads NOT GUILTY to all his charges.

I’m reporting live from his arraignment in DC’s federal district court. @DailyCaller pic.twitter.com/jBkHHFAko8

— Hudson Crozier 🇺🇸 (@Hudson_Crozier) September 4, 2025

Rodriguez was seen on surveillance footage walking past victims Lischinsky and Milgrim outside the Capital Jewish Museum, turning around and shooting them both with a handgun, authorities previously said. He then allegedly approached them and shot at Migrilm multiple times as she tried to crawl away. Police said they found 21 shell casings at the scene.

“I did it for Palestine, I did it for Gaza. I am unarmed,” Rodriguez allegedly told police officers arresting him, according to a criminal complaint. “As MPD officers were escorting [Rodriguez] from the Museum, he shouted ‘Free Palestine,'” the complaint alleged.

The suspect told D.C. police interrogators that he had bought a ticket to the Capital Jewish Museum event that the victims attended three hours before its commencement, the complaint said. He allegedly transported his gun via checked luggage from Chicago, Illinois, where he resided.

Rodriguez also told interrogators that he admired the “martyr” Aaron Bushnell, a man who burned himself to death outside the Israeli Embassy in February 2024 to protest the war in Gaza, according to the complaint.

Federal prosecutors charged Rodriguez in August with hate crimes and first-degree murder, adding to his earlier charges and making him eligible for the death penalty if convicted.

The Department of Justice (DOJ) has sent hundreds of megabytes of discovery evidence to the defense, with more on the way, a prosecutor said in court.

The murders drew praise from some on the anti-Israel left, while the Party for Socialism and Liberation (PSL) said it does not support the violence after it came to light that Rodriguez formerly worked with the pro-Hamas activist group.

Lischinsky, an Israeli citizen, had bought an engagement ring for Milgrim, a Kansas native, and planned to propose to her in Jerusalem before bullets cut their lives short, Israeli ambassadors said in May.