A Maine man at the center of multiple police standoffs in recent years was arrested in Eddington Tuesday by the FBI and Penobscot County Sheriff’s Office.
Thadius Wind, 50, is charged with making threatening interstate communication in U.S. District Court of Maine in Bangor. A federal warrant was issued for Wind’s arrest on Jan. 24.
He had his initial court appearance Tuesday.
Wind has had multiple criminal sentences, one as the result of a 20-hour police standoff in 2021, according to previous reporting. He had engaged police in three standoffs in less than two years as of December 2022. He also had at least one stay at the Riverview Psychiatric Center in Augusta and court-mandated mental health treatment.
His arrest Tuesday came after a year-long FBI investigation into threatening messages Wind allegedly sent on various forms of social media, including threats against Jews, various politicians and judges.
In March 2024, Meta, the company that owns Facebook, informed the FBI about a user making threatening statements against police and the military. That user was Wind, according to the affidavit.
The vulgar messages talked about numerous weapons and wanting to kill people, according to the affidavit.
Part of the message talked about “the church” and wondering why assassins hadn’t been sent to kill him yet. Wind suffered from “religious delusions” during a 20-hour standoff in 2021, according to officials at the time.
In September, the FBI received a tip about a user later identified as Wind, making posts on X, formerly known as Twitter.
He included his address in one post, and there were selfie photographs of Wind posted on the X account, the affidavit said.
In at least 24 messages on X, Wind went on antisemitic rants, talked about wanting to kill all of mankind and kill the “Obama klan,” the affidavit said. He also made posts about being ready to kill anyone who steps on his property.
References to Jewish people are biblical and are not singling a group out more than saying they’re Jewish Gentiles, Wind said at the court hearing.
The Penobscot County Sheriff’s Office responded to Wind’s property 14 times between January and October 2024. Wind’s behavior was escalating and becoming more erratic and aggressive toward law enforcement, the affidavit said.
Wind will be jailed until a bail hearing is scheduled.
