Man accused of attacking officers with pepper spray in Massachusetts court
A 28-year-old man from Yarmouth Port is undergoing a mental health evaluation at Bridgewater State Hospital after police say he walked into Woburn District Court wearing a gas mask and sprayed pepper spray.
Police say Nicholas Akerberg had a previously scheduled hearing at court for a charge out of Stoneham on Monday.
Surveillance video shows pepper spray attack
Surveillance video allegedly shows Akerberg deploying the pepper spray before he enters the courthouse, as an officer tries to hold the door shut.
Prosecutors say he directed the pepper spray at multiple court officers, a Stoneham police officer and an assistant district attorney. He also allegedly punched, shoved and assaulted multiple people.
Video shows officers tackle him to the ground in the lobby of the courthouse.
Investigators said Akerberg had eight cannisters of pepper spray and two smoke cannisters in his possession.
The Middlesex District Attorney said Akerberg was subdued after an officer deployed a Taser. Akerberg, the police officer and two court officers were taken to an area hospital and were released on Monday.
Previous incidents in Stoneham
Akerberg has several previous charges against him stemming from when he lived in Stoneham. According to court documents, he was arrested for punching a 67-year-old neighbor in 2023.
Stoneham police reports say Akerberg was well known by them for mental health issues and he was committed five times according to court records.
Akerberg was also arrested in 2024 for allegedly pepper spraying police while they tried to arrest him on a warrant for assault and battery with a dangerous weapon and violation of a prevention order.
Akerberg was ordered held without bail on new assault and battery charges on Monday. He will stay in custody until May 2 when he will have a dangerousness hearing.
District attorney condemns attack
In a statement, Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan condemned the attack "in the strongest possible terms."
"The rule of law is not a fancy academic concept, it is the foundation of our democracy," Ryan said. "Anyone who desecrates these sacred places will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law."