A Detroit man has been charged with sending letters threatening to kill celebrities, including Beyoncé and Jay-Z and former football star Jerome Bettis.

Leon Desmond Barrett, 37,  is alleged to have penned more than a dozen letters between December 2006 and April 2009 that he sent to the celebrity duo, and to other stars.

A letter in August 2007 he said: "I'm getting ready to start killing some more people. Beyoncé, Jay-Z, Jerome Bettis and Tune-up Man are the first four people I'm getting ready to kill."

According to police, some of the handwritten notes referred to a reported dispute between Barrett and Bettis' family, with one stating: "We do not want to have a gunfight with them but if we have to, we will. I guess it (sic) going to be another Virginia Tech. massacre all over again in Detroit."

Barrett denies sending threatening letters.

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