Within hours of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi‘s husband being attacked by a hammer-wielding intruder at the couple’s home, a slew of unsubstantiated claims began to circulate in fringe far-right circles, contradicting the official police account of what happened.
One of the most widely circulated myths about the attack is that Pelosi and his attacker, David DePape, were in a relationship and had a drunken brawl.
There is also an online claim that both DePape and Pelosi were in their underwear when police arrived, or that the two men knew each other and were friends prior to the attack.
But the FBI complaint against DePape quotes a witness as saying he was dressed “in all black” carrying a large black bag on his back, and, according to the complaint, Pelosi did not know DePape.
Another claim circulating is that two blogs and a Facebook account, which show signs that DePape was radicalised, were fake and only created on the day of the attack to support the narrative that he believed in far-right conspiracy theories.
But the BBC has screenshots of the blogs which show he had made posts as early as August, weeks before the attack.
Many of these misleading claims have since gone viral after being amplified by new Twitter chief Elon Muskand a number of conservative influencers.
Court documents indicate that a man accused of hammering the husband of senior US politician Nancy Pelositold police he was on a “suicide mission.”
David DePape, 42, pleaded not guilty in a San Francisco court on Tuesday to attempted murder and assault with a deadly weapon against Paul Pelosi, 82.
He allegedly broke into the couple’s house early Friday morning.
Court documents say he had planned to hold Nancy Pelosi hostage and break “her kneecaps” if she “lied” to him.
Mrs Pelosi, who is second in line for the presidency, was on the other side of the country at the time.
According to court papers cited by US media, Mr DePape told police at the scene that he was sick of the “lies coming out of Washington DC”.
“I didn’t really want to hurt him, but you know this was a suicide mission,” he allegedly said. “I’m not going to stand here and do nothing, even if it cost me my life.”
Mr DePape also told police he planned to target several state and federal politicians and members of their families, as well as a local professor, according to the filing.
No potential targets were named in the court papers.
Judge Diane Northway of the Superior Court in San Francisco denied Mr DePape bail at Tuesday’s hearing.
The defendant’s lawyer, Adam Lipson, said his client – who appeared in court with his right arm in a sling – had his shoulder dislocated during his arrest. He has since been moved from the hospital to county jail.
The charges filed against Mr DePape are being brought by the state of California, but he also faces federal counts of assault and attempting to kidnap Mrs Pelosi. No court date has yet been set for that case.
The suspect’s lawyer also pleaded not guilty on Tuesday on his client’s behalf to the other charges he faces:
Elder abuse
Burglary
False imprisonment
Threatening a public official
The accused would face 13 years to life in prison if convicted on the state charges and a maximum of 50 years on the federal charges.
The justice department said the suspect had a roll of tape, white rope, a second hammer, and zip ties in his possession when he was arrested.
He had been searching for the top Democrat and reportedly shouted “Where is Nancy?” while inside the property.
According to the authorities, he also told police that if Mrs Pelosi was injured, she would have had to use a wheelchair to enter Congress, which would send a message to other politicians.
Mrs Pelosi, 82, was in Washington DC but flew back to see her husband in the hospital, where he underwent successful surgery for a skull fracture and injuries to his hands and right arm. The venture capitalist has been married to Mrs Pelosi since 1963.
Hours after the attack, the US government distributed a bulletin to law enforcement across the nation warning of a “heightened threat” of domestic violent extremism against candidates and election workers driven by individuals with “ideological grievances”.
A blog, website and social media accounts under the name of the suspect seen by the BBC contained anti-Semitic memes, Holocaust denial, references to far-right websites, and conspiracy theories such as QAnon.
David DePape, the man who allegedly broke into House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s home last week and brutally attacked her husband, has pleaded not guilty to all charges against him.
As reported by CNN, DePape, 42, made his first appearance in front of a judge on Tuesday in San Francisco Superior Court. DePape faces a slate of charges, including attempted murder, burglary, assault, false imprisonment, and one count of “attempted kidnapping of a US official,” according to the US attorney’s office for the Northern District of California. The last charge carries a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison.
Last Friday, DePape allegedly broke into the Pelosi residence and attacked Nancy’s 82-year-old spouse, Paul, with a hammer. Paul Pelosi, who was knocked unconscious during the assault, remains hospitalized and underwent surgery for a skull fracture and other injuries.
While addressing the news during a conference on Tuesday, U.S. Capitol Police Chief Tom Manger reiterated the security protocols for members of Congress, admitting that there is “still a lot of work to do.”
“We believe today’s political climate calls for more resources to provide additional layers of physical security for members of Congress,” Manger said, adding that DePape’s attack was “an alarming reminder of the dangerous threats elected officials and public figures face during today’s contentious political climate.”
According to the Anti-Defamation League, DePape is believed to have participated in online forums, where he echoed QAnon conspiracy theories, as well as anti-semitic and anti-government rants.
David DePape, the man who allegedly attacked the husband of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, has been accused of sexually abusing his stepdaughter and sons.
The allegations came to light in a blog post shared by Inti Gonzalez, a 21-year-old woman who claims to be DePape’s stepdaughter. According to the since-deleted post, DePape met Gonzalez’s mother in Maui when she was pregnant with her. The woman claimed the couple moved to the Bay Area after she was born, and went on to have two sons.
Gonzalez said DePape and her mother had a romantic relationship for about three years; however, he remained in their home to help take care of her and her siblings. She said her mother kicked DePape out around 2014, after the man’s behavior had become “toxic.” Gonzalez claimed it was just six months later when her brothers “started getting memories of [DePape] physically and sexually abusing me and my brothers.”
She wrote that the abuse began when they were young and continued until 2008, when she was 7.
“My mother made a police report when she found out, but the case not managed properly, so nothing was done about it in the end,” she claimed, as reported by the Guardian.
Gonzalez said she wasn’t too surprised by DePape’s alleged attack on Paul Pelosi, as he spent years abusing her and her brothers. She did, however, reaffirm her love for DePape, saying he was made a genuine effort “to be a good person, but the monster in him was always too strong for him to be safe around.”
“He barely opened up about himself or his past, but it was obvious that he grew up in hell and that we didn’t know the worst of it,” she continued. “… Once he sat us down in Tolden Park. He looked like he was about to cry. He said, ‘I am so sorry for everything I have done to you guys. I am more sorry than you will ever know.’”
Gonzalez said she last saw DePape when she was 13, but reached out to him several months ago. She claimed the conversation ended when she refused to deny that abuse ever happened.
Police said DePape broke into the Pelosis’ San Francisco estate at around 2:30 a.m. Friday. Officers arrived at the scene shortly after and found Paul Pelosi and DePape “both holding a hammer.” It was at that time, the suspect allegedly pulled the hammer away and began using it to strike Paul Pelosi while shouting, “Where’s Nancy?” The House Speaker was not in the home at the time.
“Our officers immediately tackled the suspect, disarmed him, took him into custody, requested emergency backup and rendered medical aid,” San Francisco Police Chief William Scott said during a Friday press conference.
A spokesperson for the House Speaker confirmed Paul Pelosi had sustained injuries to arm and hands. He also reportedly had surgery to repair a skull fracture.
DePape has been charged with a slew of crimes, including attempted homicide, assault with a deadly weapon, elder abuse, and burglary.
According to the Anti-Defamation League, DePape is believed to have participated in online forums, where he echoed QAnon conspiracy theories, as well as anti-Semitic and anti-government rants. Gonzalez referenced DePape’s online activity in her post.
“… I was able to learn more about him and his views from his blogs,” she wrote. “Though I didn’t agree with all of his views, it made me happy to see that he had strong opinions about important issues that our world is facing today.”