Authorities in Pinellas County, Florida, apprehended a Kentucky man named James Farthing, mere days after he secured a $167 million Powerball win. Farthing is accused of kicking a deputy during an altercation at a resort.
The Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office reports that the 50-year-old faces charges including felony battery on a law enforcement officer, in addition to misdemeanor charges for resisting an officer without violence and simple battery.
Details from an arrest affidavit submitted by the sheriff’s office to Pinellas County Circuit Court indicate that Farthing was engaged in a confrontation with another guest at the TradeWinds Resort in St. Pete Beach, Florida, shortly after 11 p.m. on Tuesday.
When a deputy attempted to break up the altercation, Farthing kicked the deputy in the face, according to the affidavit.
A Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office deputy was allegedly kicked in the face while responding to an altercation on Tuesday in St. Pete Beach, Florida. (Photo by Octavio Jones/Getty Images)
The Powerball website said Farthing bought a $2 ticket from a gas station in Georgetown, Kentucky. After hitting all of the numbers, Farthing and his mother, Linda Grizzle, made Kentucky history with a $167.3 million jackpot prize, the largest ever awarded in the state.
Despite hitting the jackpot, Farthing remains in custody because of a parole violation stemming from a prior incident in Kentucky, according to FOX 13 in Tampa.
Fightmaster, though, posted bond and was released from custody.
