North Miami man wielded machete, liquor bottle in Christmas dispute, police say
A North Miami man attacked his roommate with a machete and a liquor bottle on Christmas morning after his roommate told him to stop spitting on the floor, police said.
The victim approached his roommate, Macksouel Desir, 27, about the spitting, and they began to argue outside their Northwest Seventh Avenue residence, according to an arrest affidavit. He then started putting Desir’s belongings outside.
They pushed each other, and Desir allegedly armed himself with a knife.
Desir slashed the knife at his roommate, cutting him across several parts of the body, the affidavit said. His roommate ran away “in fear for his life” while Desir chased him.
“According to the victim, the defendant grabbed a machete and struck him with the handle in the back of his head as he ran from the scene,” the affidavit said.
His roommate ended up at a Zack Food Supermarket located at 12300 NW Seventh Ave. to ask for help.
Desir allegedly followed him there, then picked up a glass liquor bottle that was on top of a nearby car and hit him in the head with it.
Surveillance footage showed the victim bleeding as he walked inside the supermarket.
The victim had lacerations on both shoulders and his left palm and was transported to Jackson North Medical Center for stitches.
While being questioned by police, Desir changed his statement several times, according to the affidavit. He ultimately told authorities that the victim had a knife, and he took it from him before using it in self-defense. Desir also had cuts on his left arm.
Desir was arrested on Christmas on one count of aggravated battery with a deadly weapon. He pleaded not guilty Friday to the charge, Miami-Dade County court records show.
He was being held without bond Monday at the Miami-Dade Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center while awaiting a hearing, jail records show.
This story was originally published December 29, 2025 at 2:55 PM.
