Adam Eugene Cox, arrested in Tennessee in January for threatening to kill Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio has reportedly fled the state after telling his probation officer he was heading west. Authorities notified the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office that it is possible he may be headed to Arizona. He was last seen about three weeks ago.
Cox, 33, a supporter of President Obama, was apparently enraged by Sheriff Arpaio’s investigation into the legitimacy of the President’s birth certificate. That investigation is what led Cox to threaten the life of Sheriff Arpaio and his family. Sheriff’s security has been alerted, and Cox’s mug shot has been distributed to other law enforcement agencies.
Cox was arrested in late January as a result of this Office’s investigation and later convicted in Knox County, Tennessee. Sheriff’s deputies were dispatched to California and Tennessee during the course of the investigation. Cox posted a number of threats on the internet saying Arpaio “would die first…filled with a thousand bullet holes and… will be buried 10 feet underground…and his whole family will be murdered too.”
A computer forensic examination tied Cox to the internet threats. He was convicted and sentenced to jail time, as well as probation and a mandatory mental health evaluation. Cox did not complete the terms of his sentencing before apparently fleeing the state. A warrant for his arrest has been issued