Local man says he was poisoned when he threatened 2 people with hatchet

Published 12:18 am Wednesday, April 17, 2024

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A Nederland man reportedly threated two people with a hatchet because they didn’t bring him to Port Arthur to calm down because he was “trippin’ out.”

The alleged actions led to an indictment last week.

Rodger Dale Allen East, 27, was indicted for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon-family, house for an incident that occurred Oct. 29.

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According to a probable cause affidavit, Nederland Police Department officers were called to the 1400 block of Avenue E, where a male victim said East threatened him and his wife with hatchet. In addition, East reportedly made suicidal and homicidal remarks.

The victim told police East began to demand to go to Port Arthur to retrieve a handgun and that he previously made multiple threats to harm an ex-girlfriend and his unborn child earlier that day, the document read.

East allegedly became irate when the male said he would not bring him to Port Arthur, left the home and grabbed a hatchet from the front yard. He then returned inside and threatened the male and a female.

The male brought East to Port Arthur out of fear, the document read, and East was later arrested by the Port Arthur Police Department for public intoxication.

East was later interviewed by Nederland Police, where he allegedly claimed he was poisoned by his mother, who made him a drink that made him hallucinate.

East reportedly acknowledged the argument, saying he wanted to go to a person’s house to “calm down” because he was “trippin’ out” but denied puling a weapon.

In addition, recorded calls from the Jefferson County Jail were reviewed, and East reportedly told a person via phone how he had pulled the hatchet on the two individuals. Later in a conversation with a separate person, East reportedly asked the person to tell the victims he didn’t mean to pull the hatchet because he was “trippin.’”

He then told the person to contact the Nederland Police Department and tell them that he did not pull the weapon, thus trying to convince the person to say they were at the scene.

East was previously indicted on a charge of tampering with a witness when he allegedly threatened to claim a individual molested him for several years when he was younger in order to get the person to drop assault charges.