A federal grand jury indicted Forrest Kendall Pemberton, 27, of Gainesville, Fla., on hate crime and firearms charges for allegedly trying to carry out a mass shooting targeting AIPAC employees in Plantation, Fla.
He was previously charged with stalking for targeting the pro-Israel lobby group.
Pemberton armed himself with an AR-15-style rifle fitted with a silencer and traveled to what he thought were AIPAC offices in South Florida on Dec. 23, 2024, and he intended to carry out a mass shooting targeting Jewish employees, the U.S. Justice Department said.
He allegedly told investigators that he visited the office pretending to be a volunteer, so he could scout the location, confirm access points and then return with concealed firearms.
Relatives told law enforcement that they found a letter that they believed Pemberton wrote before leaving home in which he wrote that he wanted to “close the loop,” “stoke the flames” and say “goodbye” to his family.
He allegedly told law enforcement that he targeted AIPAC because of its “political influence” and that he wanted to “see if I could make a change.”
He faces life in prison on the hate crime charge and a mandatory sentence of up to 30 years in prison on the firearms charge.
