Gunman Who Ambushed Epstein Case Judge's Family Found Dead
Body of suspected shooter, who killed federal judge's son, found in car with gunshot wound
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The suspected gunman, believed to be behind the ambush of the family of a federal judge recently assigned to a case involving Jeffrey Epstein, has been found dead, according to reports.
On Sunday evening, the New Brunswick, New Jersey home of District Court Judge Esther Salas was attacked by a shooter disguised as a FedEx delivery driver.
Judge Salas survived as she was in the basement during the assault, but her 20-year-old son Daniel Anderl was shot dead and her husband, 63-year-old Mark Anderl, left critically wounded.
The attack came just days after Judge Salas was assigned a prominent case involving deceased child sex trafficker Epstein.
The shooter has been named as Roy Den Hollander by multiple police sources.
His body was reportedly found in his car having suffered an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound.
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Hollander was named first by The Daily Beast, citing unnamed law enforcement sources.
He was dressed as a FedEx employee and opened fire on Daniel when he opened the door. Salas was in the basement at the time and was unharmed.
She ran upstairs when the shooting began.
Hollander's body was found in his car on Monday near a campsite in the Catskills, 148 miles from where the attack happened on Sunday.
He died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, according to reports.
Officials told the Associated Press a package addressed to Salas was found along with Hollander's body, while a state court spokesperson said that among his personal effects was information about another judge, New York Chief Judge Janet DiFiore.
#BREAKING 2 law enforcement sources tell @PIX11News suspect wanted in connection w/fatal shooting of NJ federal Judge #EstherSalas’ son found dead in car on Route 17 in Sullivan Co, NY of self-inflicted wound. He was wearing #FedEx outfit. pic.twitter.com/mHHcmWZho6
— Mary Murphy (@MurphyPIX) July 20, 2020
Sources told the Daily Beast that he also had papers with the name of Marc Angelucci - another men’s rights lawyer who was shot dead at his home last week.
Hollander's motive remains unclear, but in January, he revealed in a press release that he had a lawsuit going against a New York hospital over the treatment of his metastasized cancer, the New York Daily News reported.
In a press release about the lawsuit - titled "How not to treat a dying man" - Hollander wrote that he would "fight them to my last dollar, my last breath and if there is anything after death—for eternity.
"They should have shown a little more respect for a dying man."
At the time of his death, Hollander was involved in an ongoing case that Salas was presiding over in which he argued that the military's male-only requirement when drafting soldiers - something that has not happened for over 40 years - is sexist because it unfairly sends men to war and not women.
His client wanted to serve in the military as a teenage girl.
Though she is free to enlist if qualified, she sued, claiming the draft rule was sexist.
The case was filed in 2015 and is based entirely on principle rather than actual prejudice or damage in real life.
Judge Salas was presiding over it, and in 2018 she ruled that it should be allowed to move on, potentially to the Supreme Court.
There have been few developments in recent years but in June, she canceled oral arguments without setting a new date for them without explanation.
NBC News reported that Hollander had posted thousands of pages of writing on websites registered to his name and address.
Among the writing was pages devoted to ranting about Salas.
He also self-published a memoir earlier this year, in which he trashed Salas, calling her "a lazy and incompetent Latina judge appointed by Obama."
Den Hollander also wrote that, during the 2015 case she presided over, he "wanted to ask the Judge out, but thought she might hold me in contempt," according to an excerpt obtained by the news site.
Elsewhere in the writings, Hollander wrote about his recent cancer treatment and desire to use the rest of his time to "wrap up his affairs."
"No more chances now, if there ever really were any, for glory and fortune, but maybe a little old time justice as in all those 1950s television westerns I watched as a kid when the lone cowboy refused to give up without a fight," he wrote, according to the Associated Press.
"The only problem with a life lived too long under Feminazi rule is that a man ends up with so many enemies he can't even the score with all of them.
"But law school and the media taught me how to prioritize."
Hollander's online writings also appeared to point towards a potential connection between himself and the Beaverkill community where his body was found - as Hollander had made reference to going to a family cabin in Beaverkill at one point.
And he had written online about posing as a FedEx delivery person to speak with a young girl, which mirrors the alleged tactic he used at the door to the judge's home.
Hollander, who was believed to be single, was reportedly once married to a younger, Russian woman called Angelina.
They lived in Moscow for some time, but she left him when they moved to the US.
According to a Jezebel article in 2008, the woman used him for a green card and for his wealth, then dumped him once they were in the US.
In 2011, Hollander filed for bankruptcy, claiming more than $120,000 in credit card debt, as well as rent and other expenses.
In that filing, Den Hollander estimated he made about $300 a month from his work, with the bulk of his income coming from a $724 monthly Social Security payment.
His shooting attack on the judge's family started at around 5 pm on Sunday.
Epstein Case Judge Ambushed by Gunman at Home, Son Shot Dead
— Neon Nettle (@NeonNettle) July 20, 2020
READ MORE: https://t.co/onYt6W2UJq
Daniel, who was the couple's only child, is believed to have opened the door and was shot "in the heart" immediately, according to friends of the family.
His father Mark was then shot several times when he went to the front door to see what had happened.
Judge Salas had also recently been assigned to a civil financial fraud case tied to convicted sex offender billionaire Jeffrey Epstein but no evidence has emerged that ties case to the shooting.
It was brought by Deutsche Bank investors who claim the bank made false and misleading statements about its anti-money laundering policies.
The suit also alleges that the bank failed to monitor "high-risk" customer Epstein's activities.
Earlier this month the bank agreed to pay a $150million fine for continuing to work with Epstein after he was convicted of soliciting underage prostitutes in 2008.
It's unclear whether Salas's husband is actively involved in any cases.
Friends say Judge Salas often made remarks about her job making her a target for attacks but that recently, she was not concerned.
"As a judge, she had threats from time to time, but everyone is saying that recently there had not been any," Francis 'Mac' Womack, the mayor of North Brunswick, New Jersey said.
"She had some high-profile cases, and she was always a little concerned," Marion Costanza, who lives three doors down from the family, said.
She and Daniel were close, neighbors said, and she was devastated when he moved away from home to go to college.
"I think she cried for a week and that’s just in D.C. He was her only child," Costanza added.
She said Daniel was a good-natured boy who once brought her supplies during a snow storm.
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Attorney General Bill Barr released a statement on Monday afternoon expressing his condolences.
"On behalf of the entire Justice Department, I send my deepest condolences to Judge Salas and her family on the death of their son and wish her husband a swift and complete recovery.
"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 said.
The U.S. Marshals have also been called to provide the judge with a security detail, according to a law enforcement official.
The FBI, U.S. Marshals, New Jersey State Police along with the New Jersey Office of the Attorney General have been on the scene of the shooting throughout Sunday evening.
"The FBI is investigating a shooting that took place at the home of Judge Esther Salas in North Brunswick Township, NJ early this evening July 19," the bureau said in a statement.
"We are working closely with our state and local partners and will provide additional updates when available."
