A fringe candidate for governor who played up his satanic side — and pledged public impalement for terrorists — wound up behind bars Tuesday thanks to a sharp-eyed sheriff's dispatcher.
Jonathon “The Impaler” Sharkey, 41, of Princeton was arrested Monday night on two felony counts from Indiana, said Mike Smith, the Mille Lacs County jail administrator. One warrant was for escape, another for stalking.
Sharkey launched his campaign last month under the banner of the Vampyres, Witches and Pagans party. His platform includes an emphasis on education, tax breaks for farmers and better benefits for veterans, but he also said he favored impaling certain wrongdoers in front of the State Capitol.
Sheriff Brent Lindgren said Sharkey's warrants were discovered by a dispatcher making routine warrant queries. Lindgren said the dispatcher had seen news stories about Sharkey's campaign and recognized the name on the warrant — Rocky Flash — as a name Sharkey had used as a pro wrestler.
Sharkey was arrested by police in Princeton without incident, Lindgren said. He remained in the jail Tuesday pending extradition proceedings.
Roger Rayl, a spokesman in the Marion County, Ind., prosecutor's office, confirmed outstanding warrants for Sharkey but didn't immediately have details on the cases.
Sharkey has formed a campaign committee for governor, but actual filing doesn't occur until July.