He told San Francisco police after his arrest that, “If Nancy [Pelosi] if she told DePape the “truth,” he would let her go, and if she “lied,” he would break her “knees” so they could take her to Congress.
Nancy Pelosi said in a statement Monday night that “Paul is making steady progress in a long recovery process.” Paul Pelosi was hospitalized after the attack and underwent what the speaker’s office described as “successful surgery to repair a fractured skull and serious injuries to his right arm and hands.”
The suspect had targeted the Pelosi home to confront the House speaker, acting San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins said at a news conference Monday. DePape allegedly forced his way through a rear glass door to the second floor of the home, where Paul Pelosi was sleeping. He then woke up Paul Pelosi, who was dressed in pajamas and boxer shorts, and asked where his wife was, according to Jenkins.
Paul Pelosi then tried to get to the elevator at Pelosi’s home, Jenkins said, and asked to go to the bathroom, where he made a call to 911. The defendant then realized that Paul Pelosi had called, Jenkins said. Two officers soon arrived and when they did, they saw the defendant holding a hammer, which he used to strike Pelosi, Jenkins said.
The FBI affidavit filed in the federal case against DePape also said San Francisco police “recovered zippers in Pelosi’s bedroom and in the hallway near the front door of the Pelosi residence.”
Officers also searched DePape’s backpack at the Pelosi residence and found “among other things, a roll of tape, white rope, a hammer, a pair of rubber and cloth gloves and a journal,” the affidavit said. He reported that Paul Pelosi said he had never seen DePape before.
DePape, 42, is charged with attempted murder, residential burglary, assault with a deadly weapon, elder abuse, false imprisonment of an elderly person and making threats against a public official and their family, Jenkins said.
Jenkins said investigators believe DePape intended to kill Paul Pelosi and that his actions were politically motivated. “What is clear, based on the evidence we have so far, is that this home and the speaker herself were specifically targeted by the defendant,” Jenkins said.
During the press conference Jenkins also called on leaders and citizens to “watch the words we speak and turn down the volume of our political rhetoric.”
DePape was also indicted Monday on federal charges of assaulting a family member of a federal official and attempting to kidnap a federal official. He is scheduled to be arraigned in San Francisco on Tuesday.
Suspect Charged in Attack at Paul Pelosi’s Home 3:42 AM
DePape also had a list of people he wanted to target, law enforcement sources briefed on the investigation told CBS News. The sources said he may have planned to attack more people if he hadn’t been arrested after Pelosi was attacked.
— Rob Legare, Jeff Pegues and Gina Martinez contributed to this report
