An ex-employee of the Elkins City Water Department in West Virginia was arrested Wednesday afternoon after allegedly making violent threats against President Donald Trump and local Mayor Jerry Marco, authorities said.
Christopher Curtis, 44, faces a charge of threats of terroristic acts following an incident that unfolded on Wednesday, July 8, immediately after he was terminated from his municipal job. The specific reasons behind his firing have not been released.
According to a criminal complaint obtained by the local newspaper The Inter-Mountain, witnesses reported that Curtis began shouting profanities and making explicit threats after losing his job. Onlookers stated they watched Curtis handle a pipe wrench while acting as if “he was splitting the president’s head open.”
The complaint details specific statements Curtis allegedly made during the outburst. “I was put on this earth to help cleanse the earth from people like Donald Trump,” Curtis reportedly stated.
WDTV further reported that Curtis described Trump’s head, suggesting he would “split it open,” and declared that Mayor Marco was a “marked man.”
The sudden escalation forced officials to place all Elkins city offices on an immediate lockdown to ensure worker safety. In a press release issued by the Randolph County Sheriff’s Office, officials noted, “The mayor and his staff deemed the defendant to be a credible threat to the City of Elkins employees.”
Law enforcement used an emergency ping on Curtis’ cellphone to track his location as he moved through the area. Deputies ultimately apprehended him around 2 p.m. on Wednesday, just after he left the local fire department. The sheriff’s office confirmed that investigators collected multiple witness statements detailing Curtis’ actions and remarks during the disruption.
Court records show that Curtis has since pleaded not guilty to the felony charge. He remains in custody ahead of a preliminary hearing scheduled for July 14.
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