NEW ORLEANS — A Philadelphia man, who is an inmate at the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office jail, was rearrested Wednesday after officials say he threatened to kill President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, former President Donald Trump, and other U.S. leaders.
Shaun Chapman, 37, was booked with additional charges of threatening a public official and terrorizing as The Times-Picayune | New Orleans Advocate reports.
The sheriff’s office says Chapman, who suffers from bipolar disorder, was in jail on charges of attempted kidnapping and aggravated assault for allegedly holding three people hostage at knifepoint inside a bar at the Hyatt Regency Hotel back in December.
As the newspaper reports, court documents say Chapman, while in custody, threatened to "blow up every federal building in the city of Philadelphia," and threatened to kill the president, vice president, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, and federal judges Christopher Conner and Sylvia Rambo of the Pennsylvania Middle District Court.
Hyatt Regency incident
On December 3, 2022, Chapman was initially arrested after he was accused of corralling three people at knifepoint into the Hyatt Regency Hotel’s bar and holding them hostage.
Police say he pulled a knife on a man waiting at a nearby bus stop and a security guard and forced them into the hotel. He also allegedly threatened a hotel bartender.
A hotel maintenance worker and an off-duty Louisiana State Police trooper intervened and tackled Chapman ending the situation.
At his first court hearing, attorneys for Chapman says he is diagnosed with bipolar depression and was not taking his medication.
Chapman’s bond was set at $100,000 but a judge added $40,000 on Wednesday related to the threats he made.
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