Tobias Brewer (via Brevard County Sheriff’s Office).
A Florida teen who allegedly tried to kill his mother with a frying pan and a pocketknife because she was “constantly harping” about him cleaning his room is facing felony charges in an adult court.
Tobias “Toby” Brewer, 17, is accused of attacking his mother Carol Gray, 69, in late November. Police were called to Gray’s home in the early morning hours of Nov. 30, where they found the woman lying on her back near the laundry room, gravely injured.
“The victim was covered in blood and had multiple stab wounds on her body,” a probable cause affidavit reviewed by Law&Crime said. She was also suffering “blunt force trauma to the face as well as to the back of her head,” the affidavit said, adding that the woman’s nose was “almost completely detached” when police found her.
A “small black folding knife” and a frying pan with a broken handle “covered in blood” was found next to her, the affidavit said.
But she had not died.
“As officers were requesting rescue to respond to the scene, the victim took a breath and stated ‘Toby’ did this,” the affidavit said. Authorities identified “Toby” as Gray’s son, Brewer, were eventually able to track his location through his cell phone. Brewer led police on a high-speed chase through several communities, but he was caught after crashing his car into a wooded area where he and his girlfriend both tried to flee on foot.
According to police documents, Brewer confessed everything.
“During a sworn audio and video recorded post Miranda interview with the suspect, he admitted to stabbing the victim multiple times with a pocket knife that he carries around,” an arrest warrant affidavit reviewed by Law&Crime said. “He also advised that he struck the victim in the head until the handle of the frying pan broke, at which time he pulled out his pocket knife and began stabbing her repeatedly.”
According to the affidavit, Brewer told police that he was “upset because his mother was constantly on his case about cleaning his room” and explained that he “does not like cleaning his room” and was “tired” of his mother “constantly harping about it.”
Police were apparently tipped off shortly before 2:30 a.m. on Nov. 30 by a woman whose son told her that “his friend ‘Toby’ killed his mother, according to the affidavit. Brewer’s friend, a minor whose name Law&Crime has declined to publish, had walked to Brewer’s house after receiving multiple calls from him. Once he arrived, this friend encountered a second friend of Brewer’s. The witness told police that he then heard “loud bangs coming from the rear of the residence.”
Brewer’s friend walked to the back of the house and “located the suspect standing over the victim holding a frying pan,” the affidavit said.
The witness told police that he heard Gray saying “Toby Stop [sic].”
From there, police say, Brewer fled in his mother’s car. Brewer’s friends reportedly followed the suspect to his girlfriend’s house, another teenager. The cars were ultimately separated, and it was some time later that Brewer led police on the “multi-county pursuit” that ended with him crashing in the woods.
According to Brevard County court records, Brewer’s case has been transferred to adult court. Arrest records show that he has been charged with attempted murder, criminal conspiracy to commit a capital felony, fleeing with disregard of safety to persons or property, and grand theft of a motor vehicle.
Brevard County Sheriff’s Office records indicate that Brewer is currently in custody on $17,000 bond. His next court appearance is schedule for Jan. 11, 2023.
According to the arrest warrant affidavit, Gray was airlifted to a medical center and was listed in critical stable condition.
