Zip ties were found at the scene of an intruder’s attack on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s husband at the couple’s California home, San Francisco police said Sunday.
Police did not specify how many zip ties were found or discuss their intended purpose. Motive remained under investigation. CNN first reported the presence of restraints.
The only people who were at the home during the violent break-in early Friday were Paul Pelosi, 82, and David DePape, 42, who faces attempted murder and other charges, police said, clarifying remarks Police Chief Bill Scott made at a news conference Friday.
A federal law enforcement source familiar with the investigation said the criminal probe, led by San Francisco police, is expected to result in state charges against DePape in San Francisco Superior Court as early as Monday or Tuesday.
Federal investigators continue to conduct a parallel investigation to determine whether DePape will also face any federal charges.
Police said officers entered the home early Friday and saw Paul Pelosi and the suspect locked in a battle over a hammer. As Pelosi released his grip, the attacker yanked it and struck Pelosi in the head, they said.
The San Francisco County District Attorney's Office said the suspect entered through the rear of the home by breaking a window. He then went up a flight of stairs and confronted Paul Pelosi, the office alleged.
Pelosi was rushed to Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital, where he “underwent successful surgery to repair a skull fracture and serious injuries to his right arm and hands,” the speaker’s office said in a statement Friday.
Pelosi remains in the intensive care unit surrounded by family members, a source with knowledge of the situation told NBC News early Monday.
The suspect was also hospitalized following the incident and remained so Sunday afternoon, according to the San Francisco Sheriff's Department. His condition and the exact reasons for his treatment were unavailable.
Two sources said the intruder was searching for Nancy Pelosi, who was in Washington, D.C., at the time of the attack. The sources, one of whom is a senior U.S. official, said that before the assault occurred, the intruder confronted Paul Pelosi, shouting: “Where is Nancy? Where is Nancy?”
Blog posts that are being investigated in connection with DePape highlight sprawling and contradictory views, said multiple senior law enforcement officials familiar with the case. The posts take aspects of liberal antiestablishment ideas to more recent posts that espouse positions typically associated with far-right extremism, the sources said.
DePape appeared to operate a website on which he wrote a wide variety of posts touching on almost all manner of modern conspiracy thinking: aliens, Jewish people, communism, vaccines, voter fraud and many other topics. Many of the posts were published in the past few months.
