The man who assaulted the husband of congressional Democrat leader Nancy Pelosi with a hammer in late October, hoping to go after her, described a ‘pretty friendly’ incident to investigators, according to a reported recording Wednesday by several American media.
• Read also: United States: Nancy Pelosi’s husband released from hospital after assault
• Read also: Assault of Nancy Pelosi’s husband: the suspect also targeted other politicians
• Read also: Nancy Pelosi ‘traumatized’ by violent assault on her husband
Prosecuted among other things for attempted murder, David DePape appeared on Wednesday before a court in San Francisco, during a preliminary hearing which was to determine whether he should be the subject of a trial. He denied all charges against him.
Judge Stephen Murphy has ruled: the evidence is sufficient for a trial, according to him.
“The only reasonable interpretation of (Mr. DePape’s) statements is that he intended to kill Paul Pelosi when Mr. Pelosi got in his way,” the magistrate said.
The formal arraignment is scheduled for a hearing on December 28.
Facing the judge, the prosecutor broadcast several parts of an interrogation conducted by the police just after the attack on Paul Pelosi, when the suspect was still in the hospital.
The 42-year-old Canadian, a former nudist activist adept at conspiracy theories on social networks, then described his intrusion into the Pelosi home in San Francisco which, according to him, took place in a rather cordial atmosphere, until the offensive.
“I had threatened him once or twice but, overall, it was quite friendly,” said the suspect during this interrogation, reported by the San Francisco Chronicle.
Faced with the police, however, he admitted to having hit Paul Pelosi “with all (his) strength” with the hammer.
Equipped in particular with a rope, pairs of gloves and adhesive tape, the man initially targeted Nancy Pelosi, a few days before the American mid-term elections. He planned to “break the ball joints” of the parliamentarian if she did not confess the “lies” of the Democratic camp, according to the investigation.
But she was in Washington that day. Her husband Paul Pelosi, 82, had time to call the 911 emergency number before he was punched and fractured his skull and then passed out. He had to be operated on and spent a week in the hospital.
US authorities believe the suspect intended to kidnap Ms. Pelosi, second in line after Vice President Kamala Harris to replace Joe Biden in the event of force majeure.
Mr. DePape also assured during the interrogation that he wanted to attack other American personalities, in particular the governor of California Gavin Newsom, the son of President Hunter Biden, and the actor Tom Hanks, indicated a police officer during of the hearing.
She did not say whether the police had been able to establish that the suspect already had concrete plans for this purpose, according to the local channel KRON4, which reported her testimony.
In the event of a trial, the Canadian faces a sentence of up to life, according to the attorney general of San Francisco. He is also being prosecuted separately by federal justice and he also denies all the charges.
Nancy Pelosi announced in mid-November to renounce the post of leader of the Democrats in the future House of Representatives, where the Republicans obtained the majority.
At the beginning of November, she explained that the full recovery of her husband, who was operated on and spent a week in the hospital, “will be (it) long”.