Tweets Against Mansfield Store Turn Customer Into Jailbird: Warrant

MANSFIELD, CT — An eastern Connecticut man is in custody in connection with a violent social media threat against a Mansfield business, state police said.

According to a warrant, state police received a complaint on April 11 from the Staples store in Mansfield claiming that the business and a staffer had received violent threats vial the social platform X, the former Twitter.

The threat was made from the X account "The SleepingGiant,"and traced to a 42-year-old Chaplin man, according to a warrant. The man said in an X post that, since he has no store account and can't send a direct message, "I have to put them on blast in a tweet," according to a warrant.

According to a warrant, One message read: "I.Want.My.Money. in the next 2 days ... Where's my money ... I'm not playng."

According to a warrant the man then threatened to cut off body parts of a manager in his basement and concluded with, "I'm going back tomorrow."

According to a warrant, the man walked into the Staples at 6:50 p.m. on April 9 — 10 minutes before the posted closing time — and attempted to return a piece of electronics he purchased on the store's website in person. The store's database showed the items had already been declared as returned, according to a warrant.

The man left "frustrated," according to a warrant, and called the next day to again inquire about the return and appeared to be peaceful, according to testimony outlined in a warrant.

The threatening messages then followed, according to a warrant.

The man was charged with misdemeanor second-degree threatening and second-degree breach of peace.

He failed to post a $5,000 bond at a May 10 arraignment and remained in custody Wednesday, according to judicial system records. He is due back in Rockville Superior Court on May 30.

Two cases with the same name and birth year are also listed on the judicial system database — a public disturbance charge out of Groton; and a threatening and felony criminal trespass case out of Danielson Superior Court. He also failed to post of $5,000 bond in the latter case, records show.