A man who went viral this spring when video circulated of him boarding a Red Line train and threatening to kill people while wielding two hammers is cooling his heels in the Cook County Jail after allegedly threatening to kill a sheriff’s police officer who woke him up and told him he could not sleep on the Red Line — with hammers.
Eric Vinson, 51, of Bartlett, has been arrested at least 49 times since 2015, according to court records, including twice since he gained a fleeting moment of internet fame with that cellphone video in mid-March.
The footage, which has been viewed tens of millions of times on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok, showed Vinson boarding a Red Line train while brandishing a metal hammer in each hand and threatening to kill passengers, one of whom recorded the incident. Other passengers tried to ignore him by looking at their phones or staring at the floor. Ultimately, no injuries were reported…