Aspiring Rapper Questioned By Police Over Video With Apparent Threat To Illinois AG Kwame Raoul, Former AG Lisa Madigan
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Chicago Police on Wednesday night were questioning a man over a series of threatening music videos he made and emails sent to current and former public officials.
As Charlie De Mar reported in a story you'll see only on CBS 2, the man was being questioned at the Grand Central (25th) District police station on the West Side Wednesday night.
We are not naming him because he has not been charged with a crime. He is right now considered a person of interest in the threats.
The man calls himself an aspiring rapper - posting all sorts of videos to his YouTube page.
But it was one specific video posted just this week that caught the attention of the CPD.
"Consider this a warning," an automated voice says in the video.
The man is apparently threatening former Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan and current Chief Deputy to the Attorney General Brent Stratton.
"You keep playing judge and jury and Commander Jon Burge with me, I'm going to play judge and jury and Commander Jon Burge with you," the automated voice says, referring to the late Chicago Police commander who went to prison for lying about the torture of criminal suspects.
Later in the video, the man pulls out a sword after mentioning Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul. The automated voice chimes in with a serious threat.
"If I went to your families' home with my weapon, that would hurt, wouldn't it," the voice says.
The man behind the video is apparently upset with the way a case he previously did time for was handled.
Prosecutors said he bought this sprawling mansion in the early 2000s with money he swindled from investors - about $1.5 million in all - promising those investors big returns for a movie he was making with a big Hollywood name.
But there was no movie.
A spokeswoman for the Illinois Attorney General's office issued the following statement in response to the threats: "The safety of our employees is the Attorney General's top priority, and we are committed to ensuring their safety as they serve the people of Illinois."
Former Attorney General Madigan did not respond to our requests for comment.