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| Photo Credit: AP. |
The 42-year-old man who attacked Paul Pelosi with a hammer told police he wanted to break House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s knees as a way of teaching her a lesson.
David DePape
said he planned to take the speaker hostage and “break her kneecaps” to send a
message to members of Congress that there were “consequences to actions,” the
police said on Monday, The Associated Press reported.
A federal
complaint indicated that DePape had some materials such as zip ties, tape and a
rope in a backpack at the time he broke his way into the Speaker’s home last
week. He then shouted “Where is Nancy” and retrained Paul Pelosi before
attacking her repeatedly with a hammer.
At a press
conference on Monday San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins said the
42-year-old suspect is facing charges of attempted murder, residential
burglary, assault with a deadly weapon, elder abuse, false imprisonment of an
elder, and threats to a public official, according to the Washington Examiner.
"What
is clear based on the evidence that we have thus far is that this house, and
the speaker herself, were specifically targets of the defendant," Jenkins
said, adding the attack was "politically motivated."
Also on
Monday before the announcement of state charges, federal prosecutors charged
Depape with one count of attempted kidnapping of a U.S. official and one count
of assault of an immediate family member of a U.S. official, according to the
Washington Examiner.
DePape entered
the speaker’s family home after he broke the glass at about 2:27 a.m., armed
with a hammer and zip ties, the federal complaint revealed. He immediately
restrained Paul Pelosi when he discovered that Nancy Pelosi was not present at
home. But Pelosi escaped and called the police
U.S. Capitol
Police said the speaker was in Washington, D.C., with her security details at
the time of the attack, according to The Hill.
Pelosi suffered blunt force trauma to his head and body and was treated for a number of injuries and bruising after the attacker smashed him with a hammer, according to The Associated Press.