Nicholas Roske, man arrested in Brett Kavanaugh threat, a ‘good kid’: grandfather
The grandfather of the armed man arrested for allegedly threatening to kill Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh has come to his defense — insisting the charges against him are “extremely” out of character.
“He’s a good kid,” Dan Shannon told CBS Los Angeles of his 26-year-old grandson, Nicholas John Roske.
Roske, of Simi Valley, California, was charged with the attempted murder of a Supreme Court justice after he was busted near Kavanaugh’s Maryland home early Wednesday, armed with a Glock 17 pistol and knife.
He also had ammunition, zip ties, pepper spray, duct tape and other items that he told police he’d planned to use to break into Kavanaugh’s home and kill him, according to a criminal complaint.
FBI agents raided Roske’s California home after obtaining a search warrant Wednesday night.
“They were always nice people so it’s a surprise more than anything,” neighbor Zach Quadri told CBS of the suspect’s family.
Another neighbor, Michael Holbrook, told the VC Star that the family kept to themselves and had never caused problems.
“They’re great neighbors,” he said. “I’m very dumbfounded.”
A woman who told The Post she used to be “best friends” with Roske’s mom, but fell out of touch years ago, said she was “shocked” to learn of Roske’s alleged murder plot.
“They’re so quiet, they’re just really nice people, they’re like everybody else,” said Mary, who declined to give her last named.
“They were never like gun people or anything like that, they didn’t have any cases or anything, they just went to their jobs and lived their lives, raised their kids, did what everybody else does.”
She added, “I just know it must be tearing them apart.”
Mary said she last saw the family at Disneyland about six years ago, which is also when she met Roske for the first time. She recalled Roske appearing to be “very normal.”
Roske had no prior run-ins with cops in his hometown — aside from a minor traffic infraction in 2015, Simi Valley Police Department Cmdr. Ritchie Lew said.
A spokesperson for Simi Valley Unified School District confirmed to local media that Roske had graduated from Simi Valley High School in 2014 and had been on the cross-country team for two years.
He worked at Valley Guard Pest Control in Simi Valley last year, but is no longer employed there, according to the company. It wasn’t immediately clear when he left or under what circumstances.
Police in Montgomery County, Maryland, apprehended Roske near Kavanaugh’s home after he called 911 and told the operator that he was having “suicidal thoughts” and had a firearm in his suitcase.
Roske said he was angry over the leaked Supreme Court draft opinion expected to overturn Roe v. Wade and the school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, that left 19 students and two teachers dead, according to court documents.
He also believed Kavanaugh would loosen gun control laws and hatched the plot to kill the justice after finding his address online in an ill-fated bid to “give his life a purpose,” Roske allegedly told cops.
He made his initial appearance in a federal court in Maryland on Wednesday, where he paused several times while responding to routine inquiries from US Magistrate Judge Timothy Sullivan.
Asked if he understood what was happening and whether he was thinking clearly, Roske paused, then said, “I think I have a reasonable understanding, but I wouldn’t say I’m thinking clearly.”
Roske added that he’s taking medication, but didn’t elaborate on what it is or why he is on it.
