The “black magic ritual” was interrupted when someone called 911 to report a man acting strangely and “burning unknown objects” behind a mall in Florida, according to the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office.
It happened on the evening of Tuesday, November 8, in the village European Village in Palm Coastand deputies arrived to find the suspect still there.
“The caller reported seeing a suspicious male behind the businesses walking along the wooded area and burning unknown objects,” the sheriff’s office said.
“When FCSO deputies arrived, they found (the man) standing along the woods with a half-melted candle in his pants pocket. Simpson reported that he had participated in a “black magic” ritual using a candle.”
Details of the ritual and its purpose have not been released. It was also unclear why the man, who hails from Raleigh, North Carolina, decided to do it behind an upscale Florida mall.
Black magic is a form of supernatural magic with the aim of invoking evil spirits or the devil himself. Spells can involve placing curses on others or protection against such curses.
It was during the check that deputies discovered the 31-year-old man was wanted in North Carolina for “making threats against the Moore County Sheriff’s Office in North Carolina in December 2021.”
That led to an arrest, and the man resisted when he was handcuffed, which led to an increase in the charge, officials said.
He was being held without bond at the Flagler County Detention Center pending extradition to Moore County on Nov. 11, officials said. He also faces charges of resisting arrest in Florida.
“Thanks to a citizen’s vigilance and our ‘see something, say something’ initiative, this fugitive will now face the consequences of being a threat to law enforcement after being on the run for a year,” Flagler County Sheriff Rick Staley said in a release.
“Remember, if you see something, say something!”
Palm Coast is about 60 miles south of Jacksonville.