EAST PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) — Police confirm an East Providence man arrested on Sunday is the same man wanted for making threats against Gillette Stadium ahead of the Patriots’ season opener.
Tobias Gray, 44, was arraigned Monday morning in Providence District Court on charges of assault and battery and threats to public officials.
According to the facts of the case read in court, police went to 58 Anthony St. to serve a warrant for domestic simple assault. At that time, officers said Gray became hostile and aggressive, telling an officer, “I’m going to make it my life mission to find you and your kid and you’re going to wish we never met.”
Gray, who was wearing a New York Giants jersey at his hearing, did not enter a plea on either charge and was ordered held on $25,000 surety bail.
During the proceeding, Gray waived extradition to Massachusetts, where he’s wanted by Foxboro police on charges of threatening to commit a crime and uttering a terroristic threat.
Foxboro police said they were contacted Saturday night by Massachusetts State Police about a “troubling social media post” out of Rhode Island. They began investigating in collaboration with East Providence police, which resulted in Gray’s arrest Sunday afternoon.
Gray’s lawyer, Stefanie DiMaio, told Eyewitness News: “from what I understand, he had some Facebook posts he didn’t think were serious.”
DiMaio said she believes the posts were concerning Antonio Brown being signed by the Patriots. She said Gray immediately took the posts down, adding that he’s in disbelief about the situation.
Officials have not commented on the nature of the threats but Foxboro Police Chief William Baker said his department will “continue to confront the ongoing challenge of malevolent and criminal social media posts and vigorously investigate those cases in close collaboration with our local, state and federal and private sector partners and take appropriate action as allowed by Massachusetts law. “
