FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – A Fort Lauderdale man is accused of threatening Broward County judges, calling himself their "worst nightmare," according to the Broward Sheriff's Office.
Todd Watson, 53, was arrested Tuesday. He faces 10 counts of making obscene and harassing telephone calls and five counts of stalking.
According to an arrest affidavit, Watson "willfully, maliciously and repeatedly harassed" judges Kenneth Gillespie, David Haimes, Jeffrey Levenson, Edward Merrigan, Sandra Perlman and Peter Weinstein.
Detectives claim Watson sent the judges emails and letters and made repeated phone calls "in which he left numerous obscene, filthy, vulgar, indecent and threatening voicemails."
Among the threats, Watson is alleged to have compared Levenson, who is Jewish, to Adolf Hitler. Investigators said Watson also threatened to surprise Weinstein, who is the chief judge, in his courtroom.
"I'm going to be showing up in your courtroom, by the way," Watson is alleged to have said in a voicemail.
Detectives said Watson also posted a YouTube video of the judges' pictures with the words "co-conspirator" on them.
Another BSO affidavit shows that Watson threatened several other Broward County judges Sunday and Monday. The most recent targets of Watson's alleged threats were judges Tim Bailey, John Bowman, Martin Fein, Ernest Kollra and Andrew Siegel.
Investigators said Watson left Bowman a voicemail in which he called the judge part of "the most corrupt criminal justice system that this country has ever known."
"You're a criminal judge in Broward County, which, like I say, presumes that you're a criminal and a lying sack of (expletive)," Watson is alleged to have said in a voicemail to Fein.
Below are some of the YouTube videos referenced in the arrest affidavits: