DELAWARE COUNTY, Pa. (KYW Newsradio) — Delaware County leaders united to speak out against violent, racist rhetoric allegedly directed toward the county’s Black sheriff.
Elected officials stood shoulder-to-shoulder at the Delaware County Courthouse as they called out the expletive-laced voicemails left for Sheriff Saddiq Kamara.
“The hateful and threatening message directed toward our sheriff was not simply an attack on one public servant. It was an attack on our shared humanity,” said Dr. Bonnie Breeze Guntoon, convener of the Delaware County Black Caucus.
Authorities suspect Sean Keenan, 40, of Havertown of leaving those messages. He was arrested this week and charged with making terroristic threats, ethnic intimidation and related offenses.
However, his lawyer, Michael Dugan, claimed Keenan didn't intentionally target Kamara and instead responded to a threatening scam call, with the county’s sheriff’s office on his caller ID.
“We understand why Sheriff Kamara found the voicemail offensive, and nothing in this statement is intended to diminish his feelings,” he said in a statement. “The evidence will show that this was a misdirected voicemail resulting from a scam call, not a deliberate communication directed at Sheriff Kamara.”
State Sen. Anthony Hardy Williams spoke out against the verbal attacks, while criticizing Keenan’s story. “He threatened to kill somebody, period! There’s no excusing that, period,” he said.
“By the way, I heard the part about the telemarketer. When he called the phone twice he got a voicemail that told him where he was calling. It was very clear he was not calling a telemarketer.”
State Rep. Carol Kazeem said regardless of political party, the position should never be subjected to threats of violence.
“There is no place for intimidation, violence or hate against those who choose to serve and live in any of the communities throughout our county or our state,” she said.
Keenan’s preliminary hearing is scheduled for Aug. 7.
