The man accused of attacking Paul Pelosi with a hammer told police he wanted to “break [Nancy Pelosi’s] kneecaps” to show members of Congress there were consequences for their actions, authorities said Monday.
According to a federal complaint, officials say that 42-year-old David DePape was carrying zip ties and tape in a backpack, entered the couple’s San Francisco home early Friday morning, went into 82-year-old Paul Pelosi’s bedroom and demanded to talk to “Nancy.”
When Paul Pelosi told the intruder she was not there, DePape said he would wait — even after being told she would not be home for some days.
DePape told police of his plans to hold Speaker Pelosi hostage to “talk to her” and viewed her “as the “leader of the pack” of lies told by the Democratic Party, the eight-page complaint says.
“If she were to tell DePape the ‘truth,’ he would let her go and if she ’lied,’ he was going to break “her kneecaps,” the complaint alleges.
“By breaking Nancy’s kneecaps, she would then have to be wheeled into Congress, which would show other members of Congress there were consequences to actions,” it says.
Many influencers, media personalities, politicians and people on social media have asserted that Pelosi and DePape were engaged in some type of sexual relationship, pointing to the facts that Paul was able to go to the bathroom to make a call to 911, described DePape as a friend while on the line, used DePape’s first name with the operator and that there was a third person in the house who opened the door for police.
Many also point to the reports that DePape was in his underwear when he arrested.
DePape is charged federally with influencing, impeding, or retaliating against a federal official by threatening or injuring a family member. He also faces one count of attempted kidnapping of a United States official on account of the performance of official duties.
The announcement of the federal charges came as San Francisco’s district attorney was set to announce state criminal charges as well.
It was not immediately clear whether DePape had an attorney who could speak on his behalf. Family described DePape as estranged, and he was known by some in San Francisco as a pro-nudity activist who lived in a ‘hippy’ house, displayed BLM signs on his windows and flew a gay pride flag outside of his house.
The federal complaint said he has lived for the past two years in a garage at a residence in Richmond, California,
Police were dispatched to the home in the upscale Pacific Heights neighborhood around 2:20 a.m. Friday after Paul Pelosi placed a 911 call. They arrived to see the two men struggling over a hammer, and then DePape struck Pelosi at least once before being tackled by officers.
DePape was arrested Friday on suspicion of attempted murder.
Paul Pelosi remains hospitalized in San Francisco after undergoing surgery for a fractured skull and other injuries. Speaker Pelosi, who was in Washington, D.C., at the time of the attack, returned swiftly to California.
Elon Musk over the weekend tweeted, then deleted, a website’s article describing the possible sexual relationship between Pelosi and DePape.
The beating of the speaker’s husband follows other attacks and threats. This summer, a man carrying a gun, a knife and zip ties was arrested near Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s house in Maryland after threatening to kill the justice. In 2017, Republican Rep. Steve Scalise was seriously injured when a Bernie Sanders supporter opened fire on Republicans at a congressional baseball game practice.
