A Troy man has been charged with threatening to kill four Muslim men who were outside the Troy library offering to discuss the Quran and Islam with the public over the weekend, and is accused of telling them he "hates Muslims" and that he had a gun.
According to the Oakland County Prosecutor's office, the man wasn't lying: he had a loaded pistol on him when police arrested him, along with 19 other firearms that were later found at his house.
The incident happened on Sept. 12, triggering four counts of aggravated hate crime against Peter Hamilton Northup, 79, who prosecutors said has dementia and a history of previous welfare checks related to a decline in his mental health.
“Islamophobia is never acceptable,” Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald
said in a statement announcing the charges on Monday, Sept. 14. “The victims in this case were threatened simply for exercising their First Amendment rights. There is never an excuse for hurting people because of who they are or what they believe.”
According to McDonald's office, the victims − after being threatened − called police, who located and arrested Northup, who is a concealed pistol license holder and has 22 firearms registered in his name. Following his arrest, Troy Police filed what's known as an Extreme Risk Protection Order petition to seize his weapons. Officers ended up recovering 19 of his firearms.
“Troy Police did the right thing by securing the defendant’s guns,” McDonald said. “The right to own firearms comes with an obligation to use them safely and responsibly. This defendant’s mental health issues and alleged actions make clear that he should not have access to deadly weapons.”
Northup is currently in police custody. An attorney of record for him is not yet known.
Aggravated hate crime is punishable by up to 10 years in prison and/or a $15,000 fine.
Tresa Baldas:tbaldas@freepress.com
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan man charged with threatening to kill 4 Muslims outside library
