A Florida man was arrested this week after being accused of threatening to kill his neighbors with a pellet gun and bringing marijuana into jail, police say.

Derick Wade Tidwell, 46, of New Port Richey, was detained at about 5:30 p.m. on Monday after "intentionally and unlawfully" pointing an air-powered pellet gun at the victims and saying "I'm going to put you in the ground," the Pasco Sheriff's Office said in an arrest report.

After he was brought to jail, deputies discovered Tidwell had marijuana in his pocket, which he previously failed to declare to officers.

He is now facing charges of aggravated assault and introduction of contraband, both felonies in the state.

The arrest report, which was circulated to the media, said Tidwell "appeared to have the apparent ability to carry out the threat" and created a "well-founded fear in the victims" that he was going shoot them with the weapon, which they believed to be a real firearm.

"The victims stated they believed the gun, held by the defendant, had the capability of harming them and they were in fear for their lives that the defendant was going to shoot them," it said. The victims, who have not been named, described the gun as being a shotgun or rifle.

The sheriff's deputy requested a high bond— later set at $40,000—becauseTidwell continued to make threats against the unidentified victims throughout the investigation.

"The defendant stated multiple times he had £100,000 to bond out and he will be bonded out within the hour," sheriff's deputies noted in the report. "The defendant stated when he bonds out, he is going to go back to [the victim's] house and kill... and disfigure their faces."

Tidwell was taken into custody at Land O' Lakes Detention Center, Patch.com reported. Charges and bond were confirmed using jail inmate records, which said the unemployed suspect was booked at approximately 11:20 p.m and listed his home address as Walnut Street.

In Florida, aggravated assault is a third degree felony with penalties of up to five years in prison or five years probation, and a $5,000 fine, law firm Hussein & Webber says.

"The offense is harshly prosecuted throughout the state and even first-time offenders will face a realistic possibility of prison," the Jacksonville-based legal outfit explains in an online fact sheet, adding: "The range of punishments can increase substantially, to include mandatory prison of up to 20 years, where a firearm is discharged during the course of an incident."

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