Authorities: Man threatened to kill Darren Bailey, his family in voicemail
Prosecutors say anger over a political television ad at a bar led a Chicago man to send Republican gubernatorial candidate Darren Bailey a voicemail threatening to mutilate and kill him and his family - a threat that also prompted a lockdown of schools associated with the state senator and his family.
Bail was set at $75,000 for Scott Lennox, 21, of 3300 N. Lake Shore Drive, who is charged with one felony count each of threatening a public official, telephone harassment and harassment by electronic communications, according to the Cook County State's Attorney's office.
At a Wednesday afternoon hearing, Cook County Judge Susan Ortiz also put Lennox on electronic monitoring and barred him from contacting Bailey, his family or any of his employees.
The voicemail in question followed a fight Lennox had at a Chicago bar after a political ad appeared on the bar's television. The ad - and repeated ads he had seen during the campaign - made Lennox "angry," prosecutors said, and a "heated argument" began between Lennox and his friends, leading him to send a voicemail to Bailey's Springfield office, prosecutors said.