UPDATED: Eagan Man Threatens to Kill Officers, Claims He is "The Joker", Police Say

Follow Eagan Patch on Twitter | Like us on Facebook | Sign up for our daily newsletter

An Eagan man arrested July 31 threatened to kill police officers and made references to the Colorado movie theater shooting—at one point claiming he was "the Joker" from the popular Batman films, police say.

Thomas Michael Casper, 56, faces one felony count of making terroristic threats, according to criminal charges filed by the Dakota County Attorney's Office. If convicted, he could face a maximum of five years in prison and a $10,000 fine.

Police say Casper's odd behavior began while police were executing an active misdemeanor arrest warrant for Casper at a home on the 4000 block of Ridge Cliff Drive in Eagan. Police had been called to the address after neighbors complained about loud music coming from the home.

As officers were placing Casper in a squad car, police say he became agitated and began using profanity, then stated he was "the Joker" and yelled "I'm coming back. You guys are done" at his neighbors.

While en route to Dakota County Jail, Casper allegedly threatened the two arresting officers, and continued to make references to the Joker and Colorado movie theater shooting suspect James Eagan Holmes. At one point, police say Casper said:

"I’m such a criminal. I should be the Joker. If I had a gun, I would kill you. I should have dyed my hair orange. Let me out. I’ll kill you. My home is in foreclosure. I have been kicked out of my house. What else can go wrong? It doesn’t matter. I wouldn’t own a gun but if I did I would do what Holmes did. I would blow people away. Put me in jail for the rest of my life, I don’t care. Put me in jail with criminals. I grab them by the throat and kill them. You better not let me go or I’ll go after the neighbors."

The police officers who were the subject of Casper's alleged threats say they believe the threats were real and that Casper may attempt to carry them out —in part because the suspect repeatedly said his home was in foreclosure and he had nothing left.

Casper's alleged threats came less than two weeks after Holmes, 24, killed 12 people and injured 58 others in a movie theater shooting in Aurora, Colo.—and  days before another shooting in Milwaukee on Sunday, Aug. 5, killed seven.

Casper has two prior convictions for disorderly conduct—one in 2009 and another in Jan. 2012, according to Minnesota court records.

Want to know more about the lastest happenings in your community? Check out these stories on Eagan Patch.