Man arrested near Kavanaugh’s home charged with attempted murder

A California resident has been charged with attempted murder after he told officials he wanted to kill Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, according to an unsealed arrest affidavit.

The suspect, identified as 26-year-old California resident Nicholas John Roske, is set to appear in court Wednesday afternoon, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Greenbelt, Md., after he was arrested earlier that day near Kavanaugh’s residence.

The Washington Post was the first to report the arrest.

The arrest affidavit said that Roske, who was allegedly holding a briefcase and backpack and was wearing black clothing, had been dropped off by a taxicab in front of Kavanaugh’s home earlier that morning, later walking away from his residence after seeing two Deputy U.S. Marshalls.  

Roske was later detained by police after he called the Montgomery County Emergency Center in which he told the center that he had a firearm in his suitcase, was having suicidal thoughts and had intentions to kill Kavanaugh.

Officials found a slew of items from Roske’s backpack and suitcase, including a Glock 17 pistol with two magazines and ammunition, zip ties, a crow bar and pepper spray, among others. 

Roske told a detective “that he was upset about the leak of a recent Supreme Court draft decision regarding the right to abortion as well as the recent school shooting in Uvalde, Texas. Roske indicated he believed the Justice that he intended to kill would side with Second Amendment decisions that would loosen gun control laws,” the affidavit reads. 

Kavanaugh is purportedly included in the majority for the Supreme Court draft ruling on abortion, a person familiar told Politico, which obtained and reported about the draft ruling.

Roske faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted. 

Updated at 3:21 p.m.