US: Barr decries shooting attack on federal judge

ANKARA

US Attorney General Bill Barr has condemned a "lawless, evil" shooting attack which killed a federal judge's son and injured her husband.

"On behalf of the entire Justice Department, I send my deepest condolences to Judge [Esther] Salas and her family on the death of their son and wish her husband a swift and complete recovery," Barr said Monday in a statement.

"This kind of lawless, evil action carried out against a member of the federal judiciary will not be tolerated, and I have ordered the full resources of the FBI and U.S. Marshals Service to investigate the matter," he added.

A gunman believed to be wearing a FedEx driver's uniform on Sunday shot dead the son and injured the husband of Salas, a federal judge linked to high-profile cases, including sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

The shooting occurred at Salas' home in North Brunswick, New Jersey and the gunman, who was reportedly a men's rights attorney, fled in a car, according to authorities.

The FBI said Roy Den Hollander – whose body was found in a rural area north of New York City, an apparent suicide – is the “primary suspect in the attack,” reported the Voice of America.

Den Hollander had attacked Salas on social media over allegedly using her Hispanic background to become a federal judge.

Salas, seated in Newark, was nominated by President Barack Obama and confirmed in 2011. Prior to that, she served as a U.S. magistrate judge after working as an assistant public defender for several years.