A Leesburg man was arrested on a warrant Thursday for an attack on a woman that sent her to the hospital with a bleeding head.
On the evening of Feb. 17, officers with the Leesburg Police Department responded to Steve’s Package and Lounge, located at 1302 S. 14th St., Leesburg, regarding a battery complaint involving a female victim who was bleeding from a head injury allegedly inflicted by 37-year-old MCM, according to an affidavit of probable cause out of Lake County.
One of the officers reported that when he arrived, he spoke with several patrons of the establishment who were standing out front. They stated a female came to the business bleeding from her head and said she had been attacked by a man. She was in the women’s restroom cleaning herself up at that moment, the affidavit said.
The officer then met with the victim as she was coming out of the restroom and wiping blood from her head with tissues. He escorted her to the parking lot where he had her evaluated by Lake EMS personnel. She was dizzy and had a headache, the affidavit said.
The victim advised that earlier in the evening, she was at a party somewhere near Leesburg High School where she drank alcohol. At a certain point, she wanted to leave, but she did not have a ride. She checked with a friend of hers who was at the party to see how she would be getting home. Her friend introduced her to M who she said would give her a ride home, the affidavit said.
The victim and M left the party in a black truck driven by another man. The driver took them to an undisclosed location where M told the victim he had to do something. The victim also left the truck, which left the area but was supposed to return after a short time, the affidavit said.
The victim went into a room with M, and he stated he wanted to have sex with her. She told him no, to which he grabbed her by the throat with a grip so tight she was unable to breathe. He then struck her on the face and head multiple times with a closed fist, the affidavit said.
The victim remembered grabbing an object and hitting M with it to make him release her. He let her go, opened the door and told her to get out. She left the room partially naked because her clothes were torn during the altercation. She next ran to Steve’s Package and Lounge to seek help, the affidavit said.
The officer observed a gash on the top of the victim’s head in her hair and a large amount of blood running down the left side of her face. He also saw red marks around her neck and some scratches on her lower left cheek. She was treated on scene by Lake EMS and taken to UF Health Leesburg Hospital, located at 600 E. Dixie Ave., for additional medical care, the affidavit said.
While one officer was with the victim, another responded to the undisclosed location to make contact with M who was standing outside the room. M stated he was staying in the room but denied having a female with him. He also did not know the victim. He also allowed the officer to enter his room where he saw no obvious signs of a disturbance, the affidavit said.
The officer then spoke to an employee of the motel. The employee advised that the business had security cameras, but he was unable to access the footage because he did not have an active subscription to the service that would allow access. He stated the victim did come to his room to ask for help before she contacted the police, but he did not see the altercation, the affidavit said.
On Feb. 18, a detective created a photographic lineup, which included a picture of M, to be presented to the victim. He spoke to her over the phone, and she stated she was treated and released from the hospital. She was still experiencing pain and headaches, but she agreed to meet the following morning to see the lineup, the affidavit said.
The detective met with the victim the next day at her residence. He also interviewed her and asked her to provide a thorough written statement, the affidavit said.
The victim reiterated that on the night of Feb. 17, she rode with a friend to a party somewhere near Leesburg High School. Her friend directed her to McKenzie when she was ready leave, and she got into a black four-door truck with M, another male and three females, none of whom she knew, the affidavit said.
The driver dropped off two of the females before stopping at the motel where M was staying. The other male and female left her, saying they would be right back. The victim was nervous but reluctantly went into M’s room when he invited her in, the affidavit said.
As soon as M closed and locked the door, he tried to kiss the victim and told her that he wanted to have sex with her. She said no, which was when he punched and cursed at her while telling her to take off her clothes. To stop the physical attack, she took off her clothes, the affidavit said.
However, M pushed the victim onto the bed and continued hitting her head. He took off his pants, got on top of her and tried to have sex with her. As she resisted him, both verbally and physically, he alternated striking and choking her as he cursed, the affidavit said.
M squeezed the victim’s throat with both hands, and she had difficulty breathing. At one point, she was able to kick him away from her, get to her feet and run to the door. He grabbed her hair and pulled her away from the door, continuing to punch the left side of her head, the affidavit said.
The victim tried to scream and punched the window to get help but was unsuccessful. She was finally able to grab a chair, pick it up and wave it at M while telling him to back off. He ceased his attack, opened the door and told her to get out, the affidavit said.
The victim left the room, naked, and started banging on motel room doors in an effort to get help. She encountered two unidentified males who directed her to the office. She was able to get help from the motel employee who gave her some clothes to put on, the affidavit said.
As the victim put on the clothes she was given, M exited his room and tried to come after her. He was then restrained by the two men while she ran to Steve’s Package and Lounge to seek help. He yelled about sending his boys after her. She met two females at the bar, told them she had been attacked, and they sent her inside the bar and called the police, the affidavit said.
The victim believed M was going to rape her, and when she resisted, choked and beat her in an effort to knock her out. She expressed her fear that he would have caused her serious harm had she not been able to fight back and escape from his room, the affidavit said.
When the victim finished her statement, the detective presented her with the lineup. He immediately and positively identified M as the person who attacked her, the affidavit said.
A review of M’s criminal history revealed he had an extensive arrest record that included 32 prior felony charges with 11 convictions and 22 prior misdemeanor charges with 16 convictions. Some of these arrests included battery on law enforcement officer, battery on child, aggravated battery with bodily harm or disability, felony battery, battery by person detained in prison/jail facility, and violation for injunction for protection (domestic violence). He had at least two prior convictions for battery offenses, listed as April 2007 and Sept. 2015 in Lake County, the affidavit said.
M was ultimately arrested Thursday on a warrant charging him with battery (one or more prior convictions), battery by strangulation and false imprisonment. He was transported to Lake County Jail with bond set at $25,000.
He was also arrested in Nov. 2023 after allegedly damaging a woman’s trailer.
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Source: leesburg-news
