Macomb County, MI – The 26-year-old man who was arrested for breaking into Eminem’s Michigan home in April reportedly had sinister plans for the legendary MC. According to a tweet from courtroom reporter Nick Perreault, suspect Matthew Hughes was there to kill Slim Shady.
“Court. Eminem news,” Perreault tweeted on Wednesday (September 9). “‘Mr. Mathers (Eminem) said Matthew Hughes told him he was there to kill him.’ Detective said that’s what Eminem told him after his home was broken into in April. Hughes (pictured) faces felony charges. Case now heads to Macomb County Circuit court September 28.”
Court. Eminem news. “Mr. Mathers (Eminem)
said Matthew Hughes told him he was there to kill him.” Detective said that’s what Eminem told him after his home was broken into in April. Hughes pictured faces felony charges. Case now heads to Macomb County Circuit court September 28. pic.twitter.com/k5il3IGQjw— Nick Perreault (@NickPtv) September 9, 2020
Perreault added Eminem wasn’t at the court hearing while providing some additional details about the break-in.
“Eminem was not in court today,” he wrote. “Bond remains $50,000 cash surety for Mr. Hughes. Investigation showed a window was broken, Mathers security team responded. At first Mathers thought Hughes was his nephew, but it was dark & Mathers soon realized he did not know the man in his home.”
Eminem was not in court today. Bond remains $50,000 cash surety for Mr. Hughes. Investigation showed a window was broken, Mathers security team responded. At first Mathers thought Hughes was his nephew, but it was dark & Mathers soon realized he did not know the man in his home.
— Nick Perreault (@NickPtv) September 9, 2020
Hughes had reportedly been stalking Eminem for months before he finally made contact with the multiplatinum-selling artist. In June 2019, he was arrested for trespassing on two properties as he looked for Slim Shady.
Hughes allegedly approached a home in Rochester Hills, Michigan around 2 a.m. local time and threw a rock through a window, waking up the homeowner. Hughes had disappeared by the time police arrived at the scene, but the homeowner said he returned and told him he was “looking for my brother Marshall [Mathers].”
Hughes then moved on to another property in nearby Oakland Township, which had been owned by Eminem at one point. Around 4:30 a.m. local time, he was able to bypass security and a gated entrance to continue his search. Police said he rang the doorbell and wanted to know where Eminem was.
Macomb County Sheriff Office
As noted in the police report, the homeowner told Hughes Shady no longer lived there and ordered him to leave. Hughes initially appeared to comply, but police eventually found him hiding under a bed on the second floor of the property’s gatehouse.
Consequently, Hughes was arrested for breaking and entering. Police quickly realized Hughes was the same person who broke the window in Rochester Hills, so he was also charged with malicious destruction of property.
The April break-in was clearly much more serious. Using a paving stone, Hughes was able to gain access through a kitchen window as Eminem’s security team slept. Em stumbled downstairs around 4 a.m. local time and came face-to-face with his intruder who’d managed to get into the living room. An alarm had gone off, but it was Eminem’s yelling that ultimately woke his security up. They were able to subdue Hughes until police arrived.
Hughes was booked on charges of two felony charges, including first-degree home invasion and malicious destruction of a building.
Had Hughes had the opportunity to enact his plan, Eminem might not be here today. Celebrities have often been the targets of deranged fans. In 1980, The Beatles’ John Lennon was shot and killed by Mark David Chapman outside of his apartment building in New York City. He remains behind bars and was just denied parole for the 11th time.