A federal grand jury in the Southern District of Florida has returned an indictment charging a Florida man with federal hate crime and firearm offenses for allegedly attempting a mass shooting targeting Jewish victims because of their race and religion.
According to court records, Forrest Kendall Pemberton, 27, of Gainesville, armed himself with an AR-15-style rifle equipped with a silencer and traveled to the office of a non-profit organization dedicated to lobbying the U.S. government in support of Israel. On Dec. 23, 2024, he allegedly attempted to carry out a mass shooting targeting the organization’s employees because they were Jewish.
Pemberton is charged with attempted hate crime, using and carrying a firearm during a crime of violence, and possession of a short-barreled rifle. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of life in prison on the attempted hate crime count, a mandatory consecutive sentence of up to 30 years in prison on the firearm count, and a maximum penalty of five years in prison on the possession count.
Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, U.S. Attorney Jason A. Reding Quiñones for the Southern District of Florida, and Special Agent in Charge Jason Carley of the FBI Jacksonville Field Office made the announcement.
FBI Jacksonville is investigating the case, with assistance from FBI Miami; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Miami Field Office; the Gainesville Police Department; and the Tallahassee Police Department.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Abbie D. Waxman of the National Security Division for the Southern District of Florida and Special Litigation Counsel Christopher J. Perras and Trial Attorney Manpreet “Monica” Uppal-Gupta of the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division are prosecuting the case.
An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.