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Des Plaines police probe alleged lynching threat against congresswoman on Facebook
[ChicagoTribune] Police are investigating allegations that a Des Plaines man threatened to lynch U.S. Rep. Frederica Wilson in a racist Facebook post.But Tom Keevers, 54, says an anonymous "meme-maker" put words in his mouth and that he and his family are now getting death threats.  Screen grabs of a post purportedly made on Keevers’ Facebook page went viral over the weekend after they were shared nearly 4,000 times on Twitter. The alleged post is the subject of a Des Plaines police investigation, Cmdr. Chris Mierzwa said. The alleged post, which appears to have been captured in an iPhone screen grab, targets Wilson, who has been involved in a high-profile fight with the White House since she gave a deeply unflattering account of a phone call President Donald Trump made to Myeshia Johnson, the widow of Army Sgt. La David Johnson, who was killed in an ambush in Niger. It shows Keevers’ name, photo and location in Des Plaines, a photograph of Wilson and the words, "Need ten good men to help carry out a lynching. Must have own horse and saddle. Rope will be provided." Another purported screen grab appears to show a post on Keevers’ page that states, "This congresswomen (sic) is a disgusting pig. Someone should take their boot to her face." During a lengthy phone interview Monday, Keevers initially told Chicago Inc. that he had not threatened to lynch Wilson, but that he last week got into a "fast and furious" argument with strangers "that got out of control" on Facebook about Wilson, who he said was "using the death of an American soldier for politics." Keevers said he deleted the thread because "there was some disgusting language" in it that he didn’t like. Somebody ‐ he doesn’t know who, he said‐ later made a "meme" to dishonestly suggest he had called for Wilson’s lynching as part of a "thought-out attack," he said. He said the alleged lynching threat was "not something that should be said" but described it as "a joke, as I read it." "I don’t have 10 horses either," he said. "Don’t people get in arguments on Facebook all the time?" he added. Facebook. The cause of and solution to all of life's problems. Later, though, Keevers said he "cannot remember" whether he threatened to lynch Wilson and that it was possible someone had taken some of his words "and made them into a meme." Keevers then returned to his more definitive statement. "I did not use those words," he said. He initially said several times that police had not contacted him about the post, but later, after being told by a reporter that Des Plaines police were investigating, he said a Des Plaines officer had called him simply to check on his welfare after he and his family received threats. "There is no investigation," he insisted. Mierzwa declined to respond beyond his statement that the post is being investigated. By Monday, Keevers’ Facebook page was no longer open to public comments. Many posts insulting liberals and supporting Trump remained, however, as well as several posts about Johnson. One, a meme, read, "I really don’t mind being called a bigot, racist, close minded (sic), redneck, backwoods... heard them all by now and use (sic) to it... still better than being called a liberal." Threatening a member of Congress is a federal crime that can carry a sentence of up to five years in prison. Asked about Keevers’ alleged post, the U.S. Capitol Police on Monday said it does "not comment on open investigations." But Keevers told Inc. that Des Plaines police promised him there was "nothing for me to worry about." "People threaten Donald Trump all the time and nothing happens," he said. "I don’t think a lot about what I write on Facebook." Keevers appeared in the Tribune under happier circumstances in 2003, when the FBI honored him and two other civilians for their bravery in capturing a bank robbery suspect. Posted by: Vast Right Wing Conspiracy 2017-10-24 |
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