A Florida man running for governor was arrested April 10 on suspicion of beating his elderly parents and threatening to shoot them after they tried to watch TV without his permission.

Kevin Cichowski, 46, of Palm Coast faces eight charges related to the incident, including aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, battery and robbery.

Cichowski is one of 14 candidates running for governor in the Democratic Party primary to succeed Gov. Ron DeSantis, who is serving his final term. Cichowski also ran for Palm Coast mayor in 2021 but dropped out before election day citing family health issues and struggles with dyslexia, according to local news service Flagler Live.

In body-worn camera video released by the Flagler County Sheriff’s Department and obtained by local news stations, Cichowski was shown calmly cooperating and responding to commands from deputies who were pointing stun guns and rifles at him as he exited the home through a patio door.

After he was handcuffed, Cichowski could be heard telling his wife he loved her and asking her to call her parents for help. He also told the arresting deputy as he was being escorted off the property: “I can’t believe this is happening.”

While being transported to the Sheriff Perry Hall Inmate Detention Facility, Cichowski allegedly made suicidal statements and was placed in protective custody, the sheriff’s department said in a news release.

“I commend our deputies ... and the 911 dispatchers for working together for a safe resolution and arrest [of] the suspect before the situation escalated to a violent ending,” Sheriff Rick Staly said in a statement.

Cichowski’s mother was taken from the residence for her safety after investigators found she had a “clear injury to her head,” a sheriff’s deputy reported in court documents.

Deputies reported Cichowski and his wife were staying at his parents’ home to help care for them during the past few months.

According to the charging documents obtained by The Epoch Times, Cichowski unplugged his parents’ TV in their bedroom the night before the incident because he wanted to go to bed.

In the morning of April 10, his father, Stanley, tried to plug the TV back in, but Cichowski came into the room and told Stanley he would plug it in when he returned, according to the documents.

Stanley kept trying to plug the TV in, so Cichowski allegedly began to strike him with a cane. His mother said she was calling 911, and attempted to make the call, according to the court charging documents.

Kevin Cichowski is one of 14 candidates running for governor in the Democratic Party primary. (Flagler County Sheriff's Department)

Cichowski allegedly snatched his mother’s phone from her hand and hit her on the head with it, causing her to bleed, according to deputy reports. He then allegedly threw a remote control at his mother and slapped her in the face, deputies reported.

Stanley told detectives he then took his revolver from a drawer to protect himself and his wife, and Cichowski allegedly grabbed it from his hands before threatening to shoot him, according to court reports.

The parents locked themselves in their room and called 911 after their son left, according to the reports.

In 2024, Cichowski was arrested for kidnapping and domestic battery by strangulation against his wife but was not convicted, the sheriff’s office reported.

Cichowski’s charges include two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, two counts of battery on an elderly person, aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, hindering communication with a law enforcement officer, and two counts of robbery by sudden snatching with a firearm.

He is scheduled for a court arraignment on May 5.

Cichowski didn’t immediately return a request for comment sent to an email listed on his candidate form. His phone number was not in service.