St. Petersburg transient tells police he's 'Bin Laden's right hand man'

ST. PETERSBURG — A man was arrested Monday after telling police he was a "terrorist" and "Bin Laden's right hand man."

But that's not why Nathaniel Gass ended up in jail.

St. Petersburg police said they arrested the 61-year-old transient because he threatened to shoot and kill police officers and shoot the staff at Bayfront Medical Center and blow up St. Petersburg Police Department headquarters.

Gass was arrested on a misdemeanor charge of disorderly conduct and a felony charge of threatening a public servant.

The incident took place at 7 a.m., police said, when Gass walked into Bayfront's emergency room and threatened the staff. When police arrived, they said Gass started threatening them, too.

Gass appeared to be using alcohol, or drugs, or both at the time, police said. He also threatened to shoot officers like a "sniper," but police said he didn't have a gun.

Police spokesman Bill Proffitt would not comment on Gass' comments about Osama Bin Laden. But he did say that the alleged threats warranted a felony charge.

"The aggressive language is unusual," Proffitt said. "His threats were so aggressive and so egregious that they constituted that particular crime."

Gass was being held in the Pinellas County jail Wednesday in lieu of $5,400 bail.