Inset: Donald Watson (Greene County Sheriff's Office). Background: The Paragould Police Department (Google Maps).
A 32-year-old man in Arkansas allegedly admitted he threatened to kill his ex-girlfriend and her family when he called her during a recorded police interview and she put him on speakerphone.
Donald Ray Watson Jr. was arrested and charged with one count of first-degree making terroristic threats and harassing communications, court records show.
According to a probable cause affidavit, the victim went to the Paragould Police Department on Sept. 30 to report that Watson had repeatedly called and messaged her, even after she demanded he stop.
The victim provided police with text messages in which Watson allegedly wrote, "I'm not going to leave you alone until your dead," and, "When I see you tomorrow morning, when you get out of your car it'll be quick and painless." Another message read, "Your dead," the affidavit says.
Detectives conducted a recorded follow-up interview with the victim on Oct. 1. During the interview, Watson called the victim, who placed him on speakerphone.
"During the conversation, the defendant admitted to making threats toward the victim and her family," the affidavit states.
The victim described other alleged threats and violence in a separate sworn statement filed in support of a petition for an order of protection. She said that on Sept. 29, Watson threatened to shoot her in the head, claiming he had a Glock and would "unload the whole clip to my head and kill me dead."
The victim also alleged that Watson threatened to break into her mother's home and "tie her up and kill her."
According to the sworn statement, Watson on Aug. 4 sent the victim a message stating, "im gonna blow your f—ing brains out and then mine what's there to think about." She said that when she went to check on him at a rehabilitation facility, he shoved her to the ground, took her car keys and slapped her hard enough to break the frame of her glasses.
She also alleged that Watson drove at more than 100 mph while threatening to run the vehicle off the road and kill them both before stopping and strangling her.
A judge granted the victim's temporary order of protection on Oct. 2.
Watson was booked into the Greene County Detention Center on Oct. 17, where he is being held on $150,000 bond. If released, Watson must wear a GPS ankle monitor and must not contact the victim. He is scheduled to appear in court Oct. 22 for a hearing on the order of protection.