On a summer evening in North Brunswick, New Jersey, 20-year-old Daniel Anderl was at home with his parents, federal Judge Esther Salas and criminal defense attorney Mark Anderl. A student at The Catholic University of America, Daniel was their only child and had recently celebrated his birthday. On July 19, 2020, a man disguised as a FedEx driver approached their front door. When Daniel opened it, he was fatally shot in the chest. His father, Mark, was also shot multiple times and critically injured as he came to the door. Judge Salas was in the basement at the time of the attack and was unharmed. Daniel was hailed as a hero for protecting his father from the initial gunfire.
The gunman fled the scene, sparking an intense investigation by the FBI and U.S. Marshals Service. The following day, the primary suspect was found dead in the Catskills region of New York from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Authorities identified him as Roy Den Hollander, a 72-year-old attorney who described himself as an 'anti-feminist.' Investigators found a package addressed to Judge Salas in Den Hollander's car, along with a list of other potential targets that included other judges.
The investigation revealed that Den Hollander had previously appeared before Judge Salas in a case challenging the male-only military draft. In voluminous online writings, he had expressed misogynistic and racist views and had specifically targeted Judge Salas, deriding her for her gender and Hispanic heritage. Authorities also linked Den Hollander to the murder of another men's rights attorney in California, which had occurred just days before the attack on the Anderl family. In that case, the killer had also posed as a delivery driver. No arrests were made in Daniel Anderl's murder, as the sole suspect took his own life.
