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A Connecticut man was arrested after posting a message on 4Chan threatening to kill Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood, police said.
On April 7, 23-year-old Cristhian Zapata posted to 4Chan "I WILL KILL CHITWOOD, MARK MY WORDS." His post was flagged by the Central Florida Intelligence Exchange for further investigation who traced the origin to a post to a home in Ansonia, Conn., where it was determined Zapata had been living in his sister’s apartment along with her fiancé and child.
Zapata's sister told Ansonia detectives that her brother was "always on his computer, often participating in extremist chat rooms and ‘talking to unknown people about conspiracy theories and white supremacist ideology,’" according to police reports.
She also indicated to police that her brother was fascinated with Adolf Hitler.
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New Jersey man accused of threatening sheriff flown to Florida to face charges
A New Jersey man accused of threatening Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood was extradited and flown to Orlando on Monday, where Sheriff Chitwood was there to meet him. Richard Golden is accused of writing "just shoot Chitwood in the head" in an online chat, following Chitwood's press conferences on antisemitic messages being spread around the county.
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When interviewed by police, Zapata admitted to posting the threat to kill Chitwood and said he'd heard about recent events in Florida, including other online threats to kill the sheriff. He said he was surprised others had been arrested, because "he believes in the First Amendment."
Zapata also identified himself as a nationalist. He was arrested Wednesday evening by the Shelton Police Department on a felony warrant for making a written threat to kill, which carries a $100,000 bond.
Zapata's mother says her son is Hispanic but identifies as white or German.
His arrest follows those of Richard Golden in South Brunswick, N.J., and Tyler Meyer in San Diego, Calif., on the same charges, both of whom were similarly described as young men who had limited social activity and spent the majority of their time participating in extremist, neo-Nazi and/or white supremacist forums on the Internet.