The neighbor of an Ector County Sheriff’s deputy was arrested Friday morning after the deputy said he held him at knife-point and threatened to kill him and his wife.
According to an ECSO report, dispatchers sent deputies to their colleague’s home in the 6400 block of Austin Avenue around 7:30 a.m. Friday after getting a call from him.
Sheriff Mike Griffis said when deputies arrived the suspect, Clarence Watson, had already retreated back into the house. He came outside momentarily, but deputies were forced to go after him when he “bolted” back inside, Griffis said.
They took him into custody just inside the house, Griffis said.
The deputy had dealt with Watson in an official capacity in the past, Griffis said.
Watson was arrested on suspicion of aggravated assault on a public servant with a deadly weapon, a first-degree felony punishable by five years to life in prison. He remains in the Ector County jail on a $50,000 surety bond.
