A day after the DeKalb County Courthouse had to be evacuated because of the threat of an explosive device, officials say an inmate at the county jail was responsible.
Joseph Michael Caquette “was behind the threat” that disrupted the judicial complex and several nearby businesses in downtown Decatur for several hours Thursday, the sheriff’s office said Friday in a news release. The 47-year-old from Atlanta has been in jail since August 2020, charged with criminal attempt to commit a felony out of Doraville.
Authorities did not say how Caquette made the alleged threat, but they’ve now charged him with terroristic threats and acts, a misdemeanor.
Around 60 officers from five law enforcement agencies and Homeland Security responded to the threat and swept the area for a device but found nothing. Several roads in the area had to be closed during the investigation.
Credit: Alyssa Pointer/Alyssa.Pointer@ajc.com
Credit: Alyssa Pointer/Alyssa.Pointer@ajc.com
“Not only did this individual commit an additional offense while already in custody, but he wasted valuable local law enforcement resources with his threat to life and property in our community,” Sheriff Melody Maddox said in the release.
The previous day, a Lawrenceville man was arrested at the courthouse after he was accused of trying to enter the building with a loaded pistol. Marcus Payton, 27, was taken into custody when he sent his backpack through the X-ray machine at the security checkpoint with a Glock 45 inside, according to the sheriff’s office. He was charged with carrying a weapon in an unauthorized location.
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