Police: Man accused of threatening Las Vegas sheriff wanted ex to be behind bars with him
A man with a history of targeting public officials has been accused of threatening “to maim, wound, kill or murder” Sheriff Kevin McMahill, according to court records.
Charles Dowling, 22, faces counts of extortion, intimidating a public officer, threatening letters and attempted false imprisonment in the case filed earlier this month.
He pleaded guilty but mentally ill last year to posting District Court Hearing Master Barbara Schifalacqua’s address on social media and leaving a concoction of “cracked raw eggs, spices, vegetables and/or other items” on her porch as well as threatening District Judge Bita Yeager and depositing a similar mixture of items at her house.
Dowling, who has tried to withdraw his plea, is scheduled to have a competency hearing in June and has also gone through competency evaluations in the past.
While awaiting sentencing in the prior case, he has been accused of plotting to kill journalists, the judge overseeing his case, a prosecutor assigned to his case and Gov. Joe Lombardo.
“He writes these crazy things that have no basis in fact at all,” said attorney Philip Singer, who has represented Dowling and argued his client did not intend to harm anyone, but that Dowling’s actions stemmed from mental illness.
Metro declined to comment. Public defenders listed in Dowling’s new case could not be reached for comment.
“The Office of the Governor remains grateful for the brave and tireless work of Nevada law enforcement,” a spokesperson for Lombardo said in a statement.
On May 22, the Southern Nevada Counter Terrorism Center learned of a letter apparently sent by a Clark County Detention Center inmate to Nevada Parole and Probation that included “a threat to the life of Sheriff Kevin McMahill,” according to a Metropolitan Police Department report.
The letter writer requested payment of $12,500 and instructions on what he should do to McMahill, according to the report and a copy of the note included in it. He asked whether he should emasculate the sheriff and cut off his limbs and if he should slit McMahill’s throat after doing so.
Although the letter purported to be sent by Dowling’s ex-boyfriend to another man, police said they determined the real author was Dowling.
Dowling initially denied writing the letter, but when police confronted him with papers found in his cell that indicated he planned the note, he admitted to writing it and said he intended for the people he mentioned to be arrested, according to police. He explained he wanted the crimes to be treated as a felony, so decided the target should be a public official, the report said.
“Dowling stated that he did not want (his ex-boyfriend) to get in trouble but would rather that (the ex-boyfriend) be in custody with him than not,” Metro said in the report.
Contact Noble Brigham at nbrigham@reviewjournal.com. Follow @BrighamNoble on X.
