A Florida gubernatorial candidate was arrested Friday after deputies say he assaulted two elderly relatives and threatened to kill them and deputies.
Deputies with the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office say they were called to a home on Cleveland Court in the morning for reports that a man, later identified as 46-year-old Kevin Cichowski, had battered two elderly victims. He reportedly hit one with a cane and threw a cellphone at another all while allegedly having a gun.
Cichowski is running for election for Governor of Florida and previously ran for Palm Coast mayor in 2021.
The 911 caller, who was also a victim, told dispatch that he also threatened to kill them and stated he would kill law enforcement if they were called.
Upon arrival, deputies located two victims hiding in a bedroom and said that they could not leave the home because one of the victims was bedridden.
After evacuating the victims, deputies say they ordered Cichowski to surrender and took him into custody.
The gubernatorial candidate was booked for two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, two counts of battery on a person over 65, aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, tampering with a witness, and two counts of robbery by sudden snatching.
In body cam footage, Cichowski is heard saying his father was trying to kill him and he was ready to kill him, repeating “I haven’t done anything wrong,” and “this is insane.”
While being transported to the Sheriff Perry Hall Inmate Detention Facility, Cichowski made suicidal statements and was placed into protective custody under the Baker Act.
“When responding to a situation where a suspect has a weapon and has threatened to kill the victims and law enforcement, it’s critical that we do everything we can to safely de-escalate the situation and quickly rescue the victims from immediate danger,” said Flagler County Sheriff Rick Staly. “I commend our deputies, RTCC analysts, and the 911 dispatchers for working together for a safe resolution and arrest the suspect before the situation escalated to a violent ending.”
During the incident, deputies were assisted by an FCSO drone and the Real Time Crime Center, which provided tactical intelligence through cameras on the drone.
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Source: cbs12
