Stephen Sparks, 54, of Citra, was arrested Wednesday on two counts of possession of a firearm or ammunition by a convicted felon.

The father of a woman being investigated by the FBI for possible terrorism links was arrested Wednesday on two counts of possession of a firearm or ammunition by a convicted felon.

The bond for Stephen Sparks, 54, of Citra, was set at $500,000. The bail is high, officials said, because of statements Sparks made on April 12 to his incarcerated 19-year-old daughter, Kristin Sparks, which were recorded on the Marion County Jail system.

On April 11, Stephen Sparks had talked with Assistant State Attorney Bill Gladson and admitted having rifles in the trunk of a vehicle, which differed from what he had told investigators earlier in the month.

Sheriff's officials said Sparks, speaking with his daughter by phone on April 12, told her he had dreamed of how to "answer the prick" he had talked with the day before — making reference to Gladson. Sparks told his daughter that "God told me how to handle him," though he did not go into detail, and said the end result "will be glory to God."

"I don't know why he chose to say those words, particularly on a recorded line," Gladson said Thursday. "Regardless of his motivation, we will not be intimidated by threats or fear and we will continue to do our job."

On April 12, when Sparks was talking with his daughter and the conversation was recorded, he was heard talking about being in control of rifles she was arrested for stealing and how she owned them, which was contrary to what he had previously told law enforcement officials, according to a report by sheriff’s Detective Zackary Hughes, who is also an FBI task force officer.

Officials said the calls from Sparks to his daughter contained several comments that concerned them and that they also felt he might be a threat to himself.

During the calls, Sparks told his daughter he planned to send letters to her 19-year-old boyfriend, Jonathan Beese, who also is being investigated by the FBI for possible terrorism connections.

Beese and Sparks were arrested April 3 after they were pulled over by a Marion County sheriff’s deputy. One of three rifles that had been stolen from the Sparks property in Citra was found in the trunk of their car.

Beese is incarcerated at the jail on $550,000 bond. Kristin Sparks' bond is $250,000. They are each charged with armed burglary of a conveyance, grand theft of a firearm and possession of burglary tools.

The FBI began investigating Sparks on Feb. 2 because of her close association with Beese. He was the subject of an FBI probe as early as July 29, 2015.

On April 4, local and federal officials served a search warrant at the Sparks home in Citra so they could recover an Apple MacBook they said had been used by Kristin in planning the burglary of the vehicle there that held a small cache of firearms.

Stephen Sparks told investigators that day that he was a convicted felon and said his deceased brother’s gun collection had been distributed among family members. He said his mother kept some firearms on the property and that an SKS-style rifle, an AK-47-style rifle and an Enfield-style rifle were in the trunk of a vehicle and that his mother had kept the key.

He said his daughter was aware of the guns, but had not previously shown any interest in them.

The father told authorities Kristin Sparks and Beese met at an Ocala mosque after both had converted to Islam.

Their relationship began in September 2015. After that, she began to show “unusual interest in the firearms concealed in the trunk,” according to a court motion filed by Gladson. The father also said Beese began training her in hand-to-hand combat and marksmanship and twice had asked him about the location of the guns, specifically the AK-47-style assault rifle.

That day, while officials were at Sparks' home, they seized a .22-caliber semi-automatic Ruger rifle.

Law enforcement officials said Sparks was charged with a weapon-related offense in 1987 in Texas. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to five years in prison and five years probation.

Sparks, who remained at the jail Thursday, declined an interview request from the Star-Banner.

Contact Austin L. Miller at 867-4118, austin.miller@starbanner.com or @almillerosb.