Carolina Beach councilman responds to arrest

CAROLINA BEACH, NC (WECT) - The mayor of Carolina Beach says the recent arrest of a council member in town was the result of a situation involving an ex-girlfriend.

Council member Dan Wilcox turned himself in to police on Thanksgiving Day on charges of simple assault, communicating threats and stalking Carolina Beach Police Officer Darrell Collins.

"At one point in time, the officer and Mayor Pro-Tem Wilcox were dating the same young lady and this has stemmed from that," Mayor Joel Macon said.

The warrant indicates that earlier this month, Wilcox pushed Collins, followed him and then threatened him. It goes on to state that Collins believed that the threat would be carried out.

Mayor Macon says both sides are acting childish and he hopes to resolve the issue as soon as possible.

"I have spoken with Dan, the town manager and the chief of police. I think we need to keep calm, keep cool heads and be adults," Macon said.

Wilcox sent this statement to WECT News:

"I feel its important to address the recent allegations made against me by one of our police officers. I do so over the objection of my attorney because I feel its important to the citizens of Carolina Beach.

First, I am innocent of the charges filed, so I look forward to my day in court, when I'm confident I will be found not guilty.

Secondly, these charges are clearly of a personal nature, as they are not the result of my encounter with this officer in his official capacity.

I can only speculate this officer's actions are in retaliation for complaints I made regarding his misuse of town resources, something as a citizen, I felt obligated to do.

Until the court deals with this matter, I will defer any further questions to the police chief.

Also, I'd like to thank the citizens for the out-pouring of support these last two days."

Wilcox bonded out of jail and has a court appearance in February.

Stay with WECT News and wect.com for the latest developments on this story.

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