A Florida sheriff recently welcomed an apprehended man from out of state who is accused of threatening to kill him — and the sheriff greeted the suspect with a promise to put him in a rubber room.
Viral video shows Volusia Sheriff Mike Chitwood speaking face-to-face with 45-year-old Matthew Moulton at the Daytona Beach International Airport.
‘Just so you know, I’m the one who made sure you came back, and I hope you enjoy your stay at the branch jail.’
Moulton — of College Place, Washington — was extradited to Florida last Wednesday for reportedly making threats against the sheriff, the Daytona Beach News-Journal reported.
Moulton was booked into the Volusia County Branch Jail the same day and held on a $100,000 bond, the paper said, adding that he faces a charge of written or electronic threats to kill or do bodily injury, which is a second-degree felony in Florida — punishable with up to 15 years in prison.
Moulton is accused of sending a threatening email to Sheriff Chitwood.
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Citing the arrest report, WTVJ-TV said Moulton sent an alarming email to Chitwood around 5:24 a.m. March 20 in which he told the sheriff, “I’m going to have to threaten you with death. It’s coming. There’s nothing you can do to stop it.”
WFLA-TV, citing the affidavit, said Moulton likely was angry at Chitwood because the sheriff started a campaign last year to post mug shots and “perp walks” for students who fabricate public school shooting threats.
Citing the arrest report, the News-Journal noted that Moulton wrote, “Do you know what the internet does with children you expose? They put them in AI and make child porn with them.”
The Volusia Sheriff’s Office contacted law enforcement in Washington regarding the threatening email on the same day it was sent, the paper added.
Law enforcement officers visited Moulton at his residence the same day to question him about the threatening email, according to WTVJ.
The arrest report said Moulton told police that he “believed the threats to be satirical and artistic and designed within the parameters of the First Amendment,” WTVJ noted.
In a video shared on Facebook by the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office, Moulton is seen being escorted down an airport escalator as Sheriff Chitwood stands waiting for him at the bottom.
Chitwood greeted Moulton by saying, “Matthew, I’m Sheriff Chitwood. I’m the guy you want to kill, and there’s nothing I can do about it. Challenge accepted.”
Moulton replied that he had sent him a sermon from Romans 5.
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Sheriff Chitwood noted, “But you do know in Florida, a written threat to kill is a felony? You know that, right?”
“Just so you know, I’m the one who made sure you came back, and I hope you enjoy your stay at the branch jail,” Chitwood told the man who reportedly wanted to kill him.
Moulton said, “You violated my rights.”
Chitwood interjected by saying, “I will also tell you that you will not see Mickey Mouse on this trip, and you have to reimburse us for your flight here and for your stay at the county jail.”
Chitwood asked, “Why don’t you look me in the eye and tell me why you want me dead?”
Moulton responded, “I am a Christian,” to which the sheriff fired back: “So am I.”
Moulton claimed Chitwood wasn’t a Christian because: “In Corinthians, it says bondsmen are not Christian.”
Sheriff Chitwood escorted the suspect to a police cruiser and told him, “OK, we’re going to take you where you need to. We’ll make sure the cell has rubber in it.”
Moulton is scheduled to appear in court on June 19, WFLA said.
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