DICKSON COUNTY, Tenn. (WKRN) — A Dickson County man is behind bars after reportedly threatening to kill his relatives with a large machete.
News 2 has obtained body camera footage of Dickson County Sheriff’s Office personnel stopping the suspect, Noah Mathes, on Sunday, July 12.
According to investigators, the 25-year-old used a machete to threaten his family, but when deputies tracked down Mathes, he was calm as he offered an explanation for his actions.
“Is my baby mama gonna pick up her kid’s stuff? You know, like, my stuff was sitting outside, too, and I was like, you know, what’s going on type situation. I didn’t know what was going on,” Mathes told law enforcement from the driver’s seat of a vehicle.
However, authorities said the incident on his relatives’ porch just minutes earlier was not calm.
DCSO Capt. Jennifer Caruthers described the machete found on the suspect’s back seat: “It was definitely something you could cause serious bodily injury or even death with. It had a really long blade on it.”
Officials said it all began when Mathes went to a family gathering he was asked not to attend. Mathes emerged from his vehicle with the weapon and allegedly threatened multiple relatives, including his own grandfather.
“He realized he was not welcome at the home, and that’s when he became aggravated and pulled the machete, swung it a couple of times, did not make contact with anybody, but put them in fear,” Caruthers explained.
According to the report, Mathes had an issue with someone at the home, so his mother told him not to come because she didn’t want to deal with the drama.
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However, Mathes allegedly said, “Mom, I swear to God, if I get there and [the person in question] is there, I’m taking his head off.”
During the confrontation, law enforcement said Mathes raised the machete and swung it, but he didn’t hit anybody.
“Evidently, this is an ongoing situation between him and his family. He said, ‘Nope, I’m going anyway,’ and he decided to show up and he brought the machete to the fight,” Caruthers told News 2.
Mathes is currently charged with three counts of aggravated assault.