Man sentenced to 25 years for having a gun stockpile. He allegedly threatened a congressman
A South Florida man will be spending the next 25 years in federal prison for illegally amassing a stockpile of guns, ammunition and accessories. He also created a manifesto with a list of targets, including Congressman Jared Moskowitz and second Jewish schools, authorities said.
Judge Rodney Smith, of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, sentenced John Lapinski, 42, to 300 months of imprisonment and then eight years of supervised release.
Lapinski was charged with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, possession of a firearm by a person subject to a court order, possession of body armor by a violent felon and possession of an unregistered silencer.
On Oct. 31, Margate police officers were called to a shooting in the area of 6935 NW Ninth Court, a criminal complaint read. Authorities were told Lapinski lived in a home nearby and was responsible for the shooting, which did not injure anyone.
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Spent shell casings and officers’ belief that Lapinski might be mentally ill led to police obtaining a search warrant and finding a multitude of worrying items.
A shooting target depicting a Black man was discovered riddled with bullet holes. Also in the home was a massive arsenal: Five guns, more than 3,000 rounds of ammunition, firearm parts and accessories, two silencers, body armor, smoke grenades, camouflage clothing and tactical gear.
Investigators also found a manifesto with antisemitic rhetoric, authorities said. Included was a map of local schools, parks and other community sites scrawled with racial slurs targeting Black and Jewish people, as well as a “target list” naming “groups to attack” based on race and religion.
Moskowitz was among those targeted.
Lapinski was later connected to an August 2024 shooting in which he allegedly shot at a home and car belonging to a Jewish person.
“This defendant stockpiled weapons, tactical gear, and detailed attack plans to terrorize Jewish and Black Americans in our communities,” said U.S. Attorney Jason A. Reding Quiñones. “His intent was not abstract — it was written on his maps, his targets, and his so-called hit list.”
This story was originally published August 29, 2025 at 6:43 PM.
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