Rhode Island Inmate Released Early Amid COVID-19 Arrested for Swinging Sword at Woman: Cops

A Rhode Island man who was released from prison earlier this month in an effort to curtail the spread of the coronavirus is back in prison after allegedly swinging an “ancient style” sword at a woman before threatening a police officer, authorities said. 

Casey Regimbal, 26, was charged on April 20 on five counts, including felony assault and breaking and entering, after swinging the sword with a 29-inch blade while yelling, “I’m going to kill you,” according to the North Kingstown Police Department. The man then tried to punch a police officer as he was questioned, cops said.

“I wish I had my sword. If I did, I’d stab you, Mulligan,” Regimbal allegedly told Sgt. Joel Mulligan during a police interview, according to an arrest report obtained by The Daily Beast. “I’m going to find you when I get out and stab you with it. I swear to god.”

Regimbal was already set to be freed from prison on April 10 for good behavior prior to the COVID-19 court order that granted dozens of “non-violent offenders” early release from prison.

According to the arrest report, deputies responded to a domestic disturbance call at about 7:09 p.m. on April 20 and found Regimbal outside a trailer home swinging the “sword” at a woman with whom he’d been in an on-again, off-again relationship for several years. Regimbal, who “fled back to his residence” when deputies arrived, refused to open the door and was seen talking on his phone without the weapon. 

“I’m not opening the door! If you want me, you will have to kick it in to get me. I’m going to jail anyway, so what does it matter,” Regimbal allegedly told police through the door. 

When Regimbal continued to resist arrest, deputies entered the house and tried to defuse the situation, but Regimbal allegedly “made a fist and swung it toward” Mulligan. Mulligan sustained several scratch marks while deflecting Regimbal’s blow, but no other injuries were reported in the incident. 

During a police interview, the woman said that Regimbal was “highly intoxicated” while wielding the sword.

When authorities went to question Regimbal, he refused to “calm down,” prompting officers to douse him with Oleoresin Capsicum—or pepper spray—before the 26-year-old threatened Mulligan and other officers, according to the arrest report. He is currently in jail on a $20,000 bond. 

Regimbal, who was released on April 7 and was previously incarcerated on a misdemeanor charge of making a false 911 call, was among the 76 inmates with fewer than 90 days left on their sentences to be released after several petitions were filed by the Rhode Island public defender and attorney general. The Rhode Island Supreme Court approved the request on April 1.

“Inmates are released every day in Rhode Island at the conclusion of their sentences. While the hope is that none will re-offend, the reality is that some do,” Kristy dos Reis, the spokesperson for the Rhode Island Attorney General’s Office, said in a statement to The Daily Beast. “Certainly, to the extent that any released individual commits a new offense, this Office will continue to take steps to ensure that the individual is held accountable for that activity.”

To date, 233 people have died and 7,708 more have been infected with the virus across the state. According to the Rhode Island Department of Corrections, seven prison staff are COVID-19 positive, but no “sentenced house inmates” have been diagnosed with the virus.