Florida man called cops to report being shot at by the guy he said he robbed of meth
A West Palm Beach man with a story that began with the social connection app Grindr and ended with him being shot at Saturday night got arrested for robbery and aggravated battery.
The episode Boynton Beach police say they heard from Victor Morel, 33, seemed to have everything but Keyser Soze and might’ve had as much truth as the tale that drove “The Usual Suspects.” Morel and the alleged victim each tell a story that end with the 53-year-old man stabbed in the back and shooting twice at Morel.
How the two get to the stabbing and shots fired is where the parties disagree about the facts. According to the arrest report, this started with Morel calling Boynton Beach police Saturday night to say he’d been shot at twice and stabbed someone at 2039 S. Seacrest Blvd., Apt. B.
The arrest report says despite calling the cops, Morel didn’t want to talk with them beyond that. Officers swung by the apartment complex anyway around 10 p.m. They found two shell casings about 15 feet from the apartment and, nearby, an empty holster, amphetamine pills and a trail of blood to Apt. B.
Once they learned the 53-year-old (name redacted on the arrest report) got transported to Delray Medical Trauma Center as a trauma alert patient after the stabbing caused a collapsed lung, cops took another shot at talking to Morel.
Morel’s Story
He met the alleged victim on Grindr, but he planned for this hookup to be not romantic or sexual, but all about business hookup — he heard from other drug dealers that the 53-year-old was a drug dealer. Morel said he met the 53-year-old at the alleged victim’s apartment.
An argument began. Morel emphasized his point with a knockdown punch to the head. He decided to end the business meeting by grabbed a briefcase full of methamphetamine, hitting the 53-year-old with it and racing out of the apartment.
When the 53-year-old gave chase with a knife, Morel used the briefcase of meth again as a weapon. A small, silver gun fell from the briefcase as the knife fell from the 53-year-old’s hands. Morel went for the knife and stabbed the man. He jumped into his car and raced from the scene as shots hit his driver’s wide window and windshield.
The Alleged Victim’s Story
Morel, who the 53-year-old knew as “Luis,” walked up to him and bashed him in the head with something. While he was down, Morel tried to take his wallet. His resistance to the robbery brought out Morel’s knife. He shot at Morel after being stabbed in the back.
This story was originally published February 9, 2020 at 10:39 AM.
