Travis Ray Grafe allegedly beat his mother with a flashlight. (Mugshot: Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center)
A man allegedly beat his mother, putting her in critical condition before attacking his father, authorities reportedly said. Travis Ray Grafe, 40 is in the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center for charges including attempted first-degree murder, records show.
Authorities did not initially identify the victims in the case, but they are his mother Rachel Knaus Grafe and his father Herbert, according to CBS4. The incident happened Friday evening, a senior law enforcement source reportedly said. Defendant Grafe allegedly beat his mother with a flashlight then took off.
“He fled in a golf cart to a neighbor’s residence, where he told the neighbor, ‘I just killed my mother,'” the law enforcement source said.
Rachel Knaus Grafe survived, albeit in critical condition. She was reportedly airlifted to Jackson Memorial Hospital. Her husband is expected to fully recover. Knaus Grafe and her sister own Knaus Berry Farm, a bakery and farm in Homestead, Florida. The attack allegedly happened in the home by the farm and store.
“Closed due to a family emergency,” the company wrote Saturday on Instagram.
BREAKING: Rachel Knaus Grafe, owner of the world famous Knaus Berry Farm, was brutally assaulted and nearly killed in her home Friday evening, and her son has been arrested, @CBSMiami has learned.
The son, Travis, allegedly beat his mother and father with a flashlight.— Jim DeFede (@DeFede) February 18, 2023
The story at Knaus Berry Farm is closed. pic.twitter.com/0qWSGPpw3G
— Jim DeFede (@DeFede) February 18, 2023
A longtime family friend said defendant Grafe sustained a traumatic brain injury in an ATV crash about 20 years ago, according to CBS 4. A 2013 case for charges including assault and possession of a fire bomb was dismissed when he was declared mentally incompetent. His mother successfully won guardianship of her son because of his condition.
“Extremely surprised,” a family friend told WPLG. “It was very upsetting. His parents are wonderful people.”
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