A man running for a seat on the Arlington City Council propositioned the wife of a Republican state representative for sex acts and wished harm upon her children in a series of tweets, authorities say.

Matthew James Powers (Arlington Police Department)

Matthew James Powers, 35, was arrested Feb. 8. He was charged with one count of harassment and released on $2,500 bond, court records show.

Powers, a graphic designer, is one of two challengers seeking to unseat incumbent District 5 council member Lana Wolff in the May 6 election.

According to an arrest-warrant affidavit obtained by the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Bethany Tinderholt received the alarming messages in February 2016.

In one message, the Twitter user CzarofSwag offered Tinderholt $1 and $5 for various sex acts. Another tweet implied that he had picked the locks at her home.

In another message, CzarofSwag wrote "also I hope one of your kids gets raped by a pedophile or killed by someone texting. You can thank your husband for that," the affidavit says. Tinderholt is married to state Rep. Tony Tinderholt.

@CzarofSwag good morning keyboard Ranger! I see you're too ashamed to put your name on your profile. Have a great day — Bethany Tinderholt (@bethtinderholt) February 15, 2016

The CzarofSwag account has been removed from Twitter, but Tinderholt's response — in which she mockingly calls him a "keyboard ranger" — remains.

According to the affidavit, a neighbor in Tinderholt's southwest Arlington neighborhood received a handwritten letter to her. "I do love watching you Beth," it said. "I would hate to see something happen to you. See you again soon."

Surveillance footage showed a man riding a black motorcycle put something inside the mailbox, the affidavit says.

Police said they determined that the CzarofSwag account probably belonged to Powers. (Tweets from his now-estranged wife to the account refer to "Matt" and include pictures of gifts ranging from Tiffany & Co. jewelry to a unicorn-shaped pillow.)

When police went to Powers' home to speak to him, a black motorcycle was in the driveway, the affidavit says.

After Powers denied ever harassing anyone, police asked what his username on Twitter was. Powers — who, police said in the affidavit, stuttered and appeared to be lying — said "welikeeggs" and then asked for a lawyer.

Authorities determined in October that an IP address used by the CzarofSwag account belonged to Powers' wife, the affidavit says. When police contacted her in January, she said she didn't know anything about the tweets.

Powers, who faces up to 180 days in jail if convicted of the class B misdemeanor, did not respond to requests for comment. The Facebook page for his campaign has been removed from the site.

State Rep. Tony Tinderholt, R-Arlington

Tony Tinderholt was placed under Texas Department of Public Safety protection earlier this year in an unrelated matter.

The Republican and his family received multiple death threats after he proposed a bill Jan. 11 that would abolish abortion in the state.

Under House Bill 948, which is in committee, women who have abortions and doctors who provide them could face murder charges.