Man arrested after stopping vehicle in road, threatening to kill driver in Marion County

A Marion County man has been arrested after stopping a vehicle and threatening to kill the driver. Facing three charges, including one felony, for the incident is 78-year-old Thomas Lee Kaufman of Protem.

According to the probable cause affidavit from the Marion County Sheriff’s Office, the victim reported he was driving past Kaufman’s residence when Kaufman got into the road in front of his vehicle, forcing him to stop. He said Kaufman then came up to his window and said “I’m tired of you and all of your (slur) friends driving up and down this road. You won’t see the sun go down; I’m going to take care of you!”

The victim told the deputy Kaufman regularly has negative interactions with him and others when they drive past his residence, and sometimes those interactions involve a firearm.

When the deputy went to Kaufman’s residence to question him, Kaufman said he was telling the victim about a new tire track in his yard. He said he did remember saying “One of these days you’re not going to see the sun go down.”

Kaufman is facing a felony charge of first degree terroristic threatening along with misdemeanor charges of harassment and obstructing a highway or other public passage. He is being held in the Marion County Detention Center with bond set at $15,000.

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