New Orleans man arrested outside Boulder hotel with sword, knives and pellet gun
New Orleans LA Jan 18 2018
A New Orleans man was arrested this week after police say he was found in a hotel parking lot with a sword, four knives and a pellet gun — weapons the man says he was carrying to protect himself.
Christopher Michael Dassau, 35, was arrested on suspicion of carrying a concealed knife.
According to an arrest affidavit, a security guard at the Millennium Harvest House Boulder, 1345 28th St., called police at 6:33 a.m. Tuesday when he saw a man pacing on the property in all black clothing and wearing what appeared to be a large sword on his back and a gun in a holster on his hip.
The security guard said the man did not appear to be threatening anybody.
When police arrived, they found Dassau on the property and placed him in custody without incident. In addition to a 3-foot “samurai-style” sword in a sheath on his back, police also found four sheathed knives — one in a holster under Dassau’s armpit, one in his waistband and two in his boots — and a pellet gun.
Police took Dassau into custody at the Boulder County Jail and he was released on bond.
Dassau told the Daily Camera on Wednesday that he was carrying the weapons because he and his fiance had been threatened on several occasions while smoking outside the hotel, where he has been staying for several months.
“I felt like I didn’t want to be bullied,” Dassau said. “It was mostly for show so I could keep the guys who were harassing me at bay. It wasn’t any crazy stuff.”
Dassau also said he is a martial artist, and wanted to practice using the katana sword in the parking lot, though he did not have the sword out when police arrived.
“The parking lot was empty, so I figured I would get some practice,” Dassau said. “It wasn’t like I was walking around threatening people with it. I guess it got interpreted wrong.”
Dassau said he had interacted with the security guard before, but thinks he didn’t recognize Dassau with his coat on.
“I apologized to that guy,” Dassau said. “Because of the way I was dressed, I guess he couldn’t see it was me.”
Dassau is scheduled for a formal filing of charges later this week.
