Cannibal Corpse Guitarist Raved About Aliens Before Arrest

NORTHDALE, FL — The story just gets more bizarre. According to Hillsborough County Sheriff's detectives, Pat O'Brien, the lead guitarist for the death metal band, Cannibal Corpse, reportedly raved about aliens landing and the Rapture nearing before his arrest last week.

Additionally, detectives discovered a virtual armory in the Northdale home where O'Brien lived, finding eight shotguns and two flame throwers, among other items. According to the sheriff's office, shortly before 7 p.m. on Monday, Dec. 10, O'Brien, 53, broke into a home in the 4700 block of Windflower Circle in the Northdale area. When the residents ordered him to leave, O'Brien reportedly shouted that “The rapture is coming.” He then pushed a woman to the ground and ran into the back yard.

Sheriff's deputies found O'Brien hiding behind a fence and, when they asked him to surrender, they say he charged one deputy with a knife.

While deputies were subduing O'Brien with a Taser, Hillsborough County firefighters were battling a dangerous blaze at the nearby home at 16311 Norwood Drive where O'Brien was living.

As the firefighters tackled the flame, a series of explosions forced them to retreat. They evacuated six surrounding homes and summoned the bomb squad, which discovered the explosions were caused by the presence of the flame throwers and ammunition in the home.

"The dangerous complication here was ammunition stored within the home, which was exploding due to the flames," said fire rescue spokesman Eric Seidel. "It took us nearly an hour to bring this one under control. Thankfully, there were no injuries."

The bomb squad reportedly found 50 shotguns, including one that was illegally sawed off, 10 semiautomatic rifles, including two Uzi-style firearms, 20 handguns and two flame throwers in the home.

They also found thousands of rounds of ammunition stored in boxes, metal cans and ammo belts, knives, swords and three skulls, although the sheriff hasn't said if the skulls are real or if they are human.

Except for the sawed-off shotgun, all of the weapons were legal.

Prior to the fire erupting, neighbors say they heard an argument and a series of bangs inside the home.

The Hillsborough County Property Appraiser does not have O'Brien listed as the owner of the home.

O'Brien was charged with aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer with a deadly weapon and burglary of an occupied dwelling with assault or battery. At his bond hearing on Dec. 11, a Hillsborough County judge set his bond at $50,000 and ordered him to undergo drug testing before bonding out of jail.

He has not been charged with any offense related to the fire, although fire investigators suspect arson.

Prior to his arrest, friends said the guitarist had become increasingly paranoid, raving about aliens landing and the Apocalypse coming.

Formed in 1988 in Buffalo, New York, Cannibal Corpse is now based in Tampa. O'Brien joined the band in 1997 after playing in the heavy metal band Nevermore. The band's 14th album, Red Before Black, was released on Nov. 3, 2017.

With album sales of more than two million, Cannibal Corpse is the top-selling death metal band of all time. The band is scheduled to tour with Slayer on the last leg of Slayer's final tour in North America next year.

The band has fans around the world, among which is actor Jim Carrey, who featured the band in his 1994 film, "Ace Ventura: Pet Detective."

His fans have begun a crowd-sourcing campaign to help O'Brien after losing everything in the fire.

Run by Deana Mazurkiewicz, wife of Cannibal Corpse drummer Paul Mazurkiewicz, the campaign urges people to suspend judgment for the time being. So far, the campaign has raised more than $20,000.

“Pat does not have insurance and lost everything that he owns. These funds will help him get back on his feet with the regular much-needed necessities like clothing, a roof over his head, and other daily life necessities that are needed," wrote Mazurkiewicz on the website, Mighty Cause.

“I asked that people do not jump to conclusions until the full details of what occurred come out and that you show Pat nothing but love and support and let him know that you’re there for him. Although the last 48 hours have been shocking to most people, they’ve been devastating to him," she wrote.

See related stories:

Sheriff Says Cannibal Corpse Guitarist Charged Deputy With Knife

Bomb Squad Summoned To Check Northdale Home That Caught Fire

Images via Sheriff's Office, Facebook

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