Special to the Enquirer  

A Decatur man is under arrest after he allegedly made threatening phone calls to Morgan County Sheriff Ron Puckett.  

In mid-May, the Morgan County Sheriff’s Office began receiving threatening phone calls from an individual in Morgan County. Over the course of time, the calls escalated in frequency and severity of threats to Puckett and members of his family, according to the MCSO. 

Investigators with the Morgan County Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigations Division began investigating and obtained a warrant for the arrest of suspect John Owen Compton, 57, of Decatur. Investigators determined the subject had left the area and worked to determine his location. 

Investigators received information the individual was in Texas, and they proceeded to work with Texas Law Enforcement Agencies to locate him. CID investigators determined Compton was at a hotel in Fort Stockton, Texas. 

May 26, officers with the Fort Stockton Police Department arrested Compton on the outstanding warrant for terrorist threats from Morgan County. 

The MCSO is in the process of extraditing Compton back to Alabama. Compton is charged with one count of making a terrorist threat and faces a bond of $500,000. 

“We take all threats seriously, whether against the public or a constitutionally–sworn sheriff who serves as the primary law enforcement officer of the county,” said MCSO Chief Deputy Chris Price. “These actions are unacceptable in Morgan County or anywhere else. We are grateful for the cooperation of all agencies involved.”