Attorney General says someone tried to confront New Jersey US Attorney Alina Habba at her office

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NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — A person attempted to confront New Jersey’s top federal prosecutor at her office Wednesday night, Attorney General Pam Bondi said.

The person destroyed property at acting U.S. Attorney Alina Habba’s office in Newark before fleeing, Bondi said in a post to X on Thursday.

“Thankfully, Alina is ok,” Bondi said.

Habba was previously President Donald Trump’s personal lawyer, representing him in various cases and acting as his spokesperson on legal matters. She served as a White House adviser briefly before Trump named her as interim U.S. attorney in March.

“I will not be intimidated by radical lunatics for doing my job,” Habba wrote on X.

The FBI said it was aware of the alleged attack. A message seeking comment was left for Habba’s office.

“Any violence or threats of violence against any federal officer will not be tolerated. Period,” Bondi said in her X post.

“We will find this person, and the individual will be brought to justice,” she said.

In a post on X, NJ Gov. Phil Murphy, a Democrat, said he was grateful that Habba was not harmed.

“It is absolutely unacceptable to make threats against federal officials,” he added. “Political violence has no place in our nation.”

Trump formally nominated Habba as New Jersey’s permanent U.S. attorney on July 1, but the state’s two Democratic U.S. senators, Cory Booker and Andy Kim opposed it, stalling the confirmation process.

A few weeks later, as Habba’s 120-day interim appointment was expiring, New Jersey federal judges moved to replace her with her second-in-command. Bondi then fired that prosecutor and renamed Habba as acting U.S. attorney.

Last month, the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals heard arguments in a case challenging her appointment. It hasn’t ruled.