Illinois governor candidates: Republican candidate Darren Bailey to vote Thursday after death threat

CHICAGO (WLS) — Republican gubernatorial candidate Darren Bailey is anticipated to make his first public look Thursday after a Chicago man allegedly made a violent menace towards him.

Bailey is anticipated to be voting in downstate Clay County, however a Chicago man is behind bars after he was charged with making a violent menace towards the GOP candidate.

Prosecutors stated that the suspect was indignant after seeing TV adverts concerning the gubernatorial candidate after which bragged on social media that he was a “political terrorist.”

Bailey instructed ABC7 Chicago in an unique interview that the suspect talked about Pritzker’s adverts within the voicemail, and for that cause, Bailey says this menace falls on the ft of Gov. JB Pritzker.

“That is precisely the product of JB Pritzker, you understand, his divisiveness and his rhetoric,” Bailey stated. “JB Pritzker’s creating this.”

Bailey spoke concerning the threatening voice message that police say 21-year-old Scott Lennox confessed to leaving on Bailey’s Springfield workplace cellphone.

“Very vulgar, very disturbing. And talked about my household, talked about entities, my kids,” Bailey stated. “In order that was, that was the disturbing half.”

In courtroom Wednesday, prosecutors stated Lennox, who lives in a Lakeview high-rise and works at a North Facet backyard store, made the decision from a bar Friday night time after getting indignant at a political advert about Bailey that got here on the TV.

He then allegedly known as Bailey’s workplace. In line with prosecutors, Lennox stated within the voicemail, “I’ll pores and skin Darren Bailey alive, ensuring he’s nonetheless alive and I’ll feed his (expletive) household to him as he’s alive and screaming in (expletive) ache.”

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Lennox additionally talked about abortion, including, “I’m going to make him scream and endure. Yeah, that is proper, so he higher kill himself and if he would not, I’m going to kill him.”

The voicemail was found Monday morning by a legislative assist in Bailey’s state senate workplace. It prompted Bailey to cancel public appearances and his non-public college to go on smooth lockdown.

Secretary of State police contacted Lennox and deemed the menace not credible. State police adopted up and arrested Lennox at his Chicago condo Monday night time.

Pritzker denounced the menace in a tweet, saying, “The violent rhetoric and division we’re seeing throughout our nation is unacceptable. Hatred in any type has no residence in Illinois.”

Bailey stated when the controversial Secure-T Act goes into impact in January, defendants in circumstances like this may get handled otherwise.

“It is my perceive with the Secure-T Act that threats, you understand threats towards public officers, can be non-detainable offenses, so once more, as a result of nature of this name, state police inspired us to pursue this,” Bailey stated.

Earlier than his arrest, prosecutors stated Lennox despatched Snapchat messages to a number of associates bragging and laughing concerning the menace and proudly calling himself a political terrorist.

Though Lennox has not been arrested earlier than, he was ordered held on $75,000 bond. He has to publish 10% of that, which is $7,500.

He may even be on digital monitoring, which the sheriff’s division stated will delay his doable launch till Thursday.

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