They argued over a cellphone. Homeless man then attacked with rebar rod.
A Florida Keys man remains in jail Monday night after Monroe County deputies say he severely beat another man with a piece of rebar Sunday over a cellphone.
The 37-year-old victim, whom the sheriff’s office did not name, was flown to Ryder Trauma Center at Jackson Memorial Hospital with serious head injuries and bruising to the ribs. Deputies say he could barely walk and had difficulty talking.
The man accused of beating him, Benjamin Franklin Andrews, 38, is being held on $50,000 bond on charges of aggravated battery and armed robbery.
The attack happened around 11 p.m. Sunday in an area around 15th Street in the Middle Keys city of Marathon, where deputies say homeless people congregate. The victim is homeless, according to a sheriff’s office press release.
Witnesses told deputies Andrews walked to 15th Street from a nearby trailer park carrying the rebar. They said he hit the man, who was lying on a mattress, with the metal rod at least 20 times.
Deputy Corbin Hradecky arrived at the homeless encampment around 11:40 p.m., and Andrews approached him holding the rebar while shouting, Adam Linhardt, sheriff’s office spokesman, said.
Hradecky drew his handgun and ordered Andrews to drop the rebar and to get on the ground. Andrews, who complied, had a large amount of blood on his shoes that he said belonged to the victim, Linhardt said. Deputies found a Motorola cellphone in his pocket.
He was arrested without a struggle, according to the press release. He told Hradecky that the cellphone belonged to the victim, and the two had a disagreement earlier in the day over how long Andrews could borrow it.
This story was originally published April 13, 2020 at 6:22 PM.
