Tevin Keason Williams (Lake County Sheriff’s Office)
A 31-year-old man in Florida was arrested for allegedly holding a sewing needle to his neighbor’s neck and threatening to kill him before nearly beating his roommate’s raccoon to death with a hammer.
Tevin Keason Williams was taken into custody last week and charged with two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and one count of aggravated animal cruelty, court records reviewed by Law&Crime show.
Each of the charges against Williams are third-degree felonies punishable by a maximum five years in state prison.
According to a sworn probable cause affidavit obtained by Law&Crime, deputies with the Lake County Sheriff’s Office at approximately 5:38 p.m. on Dec. 14 responded to a 911 call regarding a battery complaint at a residence located in the 10 block of Circle Drive.
Upon arriving at the scene, first responders say they made contact with an adult female claiming to be one of the victims. The woman, one of Williams’ roommates whose name was redacted from the affidavit, allegedly told deputies that when she arrived home from work, Williams got off his scooter, walked over to her car, and “began punching her vehicle.” She also allegedly stated that as he was damaging her car, she heard Williams say “I’m going to kill you.”
The woman said she was able to get out of her car and flee to her neighbor’s house where one of the neighbors told her that Williams had just killed her raccoon.
Williams’ roommate allegedly told investigators she kept her raccoon in a kennel located toward the back of the house. One of the deputies then walked around the outside of the home and located the hammer alleged to have been used in the incident next to the back tire of a car parked in the driveway. He then went to the rear of the home and located the raccoon.
“The animal was taken out of its kennel and left in the grass after it was attacked by the defendant,” the affidavit states. “A few feet from the raccoon I observed a blue mat with what appeared to be a blood stain on from the animal.”
However, the deputy noted that “the animal was still breathing” as he left the scene.
As deputies were speaking to the first victim, a visibly upset Williams allegedly came out of the house. He complied with deputies’ orders and was detained and interviewed on the scene. Williams allegedly said that he was “in an altercation with [redacted] and another male” but “denied having any weapons on his person and denied making any threats to anyone.”
But additional witness interviews allegedly contradicted Williams’ claims.
A male neighbor allegedly told deputies that he was sitting on his porch when Williams came over and placed a sewing needle to his throat and “told him that he was going to kill him.”
The man, whose name was also redacted from the affidavit, claimed that he then went back in his house and Williams began following him.
“[The male victim] further advised that Williams had killed [the female victim’s] raccoon by hitting it with a hammer and shooting the animal with a BB gun on its neck,” the affidavit states.
A bystander allegedly confirmed to deputies that he observed Williams “walk up to [the male victim’s] porch and point a sewing needle to [his] neck.”
Williams was booked into the Lake County Jail that day. He was released on Dec. 17 after posting $6,000 bond. A judge issued a court order requiring that Williams not have any contact with the victims and stay at least 500 feet away from them.
Williams is currently scheduled to appear in court for his arraignment at 8:30 a.m. on Jan. 9, court records show.
[image via Lake County Sheriff’s Office]