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Councilwoman attacked outside Islamorada home
BY JOSH GORE Free Press Staff
jgore@keysnews.com
ISLAMORADA -- A Tennessee man wearing just a sweater and underwear attacked a village councilwoman outside her home early Sunday, according to police reports.
At about 12:30 a.m. Jan. 25, Islamorada Vice Mayor Deb Gillis, who owns a local motel and lives on the premises, called deputies to report she had been beat up by a stranger outside her mile marker 82 apartment.
According to a Monroe County Sheriff's Office incident report, Gillis heard a knocking on her downstairs backdoor. When she opened it, she said a man she didn't recognize grabbed her and began beating her with a stick.
"The man stated it was because he loved her and continued beating Gillis," the report reads.
In a struggle, Gillis ripped the sweater off her assailant, whose only other article of clothing was white boxer briefs. It turned out the sweater belonged to Gillis and was likely taken out of her unlocked vehicle.
When deputies arrived, they found William Roberts, 66, not far from the scene, and Gillis identified the man as her attacker.
Roberts, 66, was charged with aggravated battery and burglary, both felonies.
Deputies later found the wooden end to a plunger nearby, a stick similar to what Gillis described as the tool used to beat her.
Gillis suffered an abrasion just above her lip on the left side of her mouth, according to the incident report. She also had a bloody ear as well as discolored bruising above her left eye.
Gillis told the Free Press the police report is accurate and declined further comment.
Mayor Mike Forster, who had spoken with Gillis, said she is recovering from the incident.
"She is doing fine," he said. "She is a little beat up. It was a traumatizing event."
Forster said he believes Roberts was a customer in one of Gillis' units and described him as "out of his mind."
jgore@keysnews.com
BY JOSH GORE Free Press Staff
jgore@keysnews.com
ISLAMORADA -- A Tennessee man wearing just a sweater and underwear attacked a village councilwoman outside her home early Sunday, according to police reports.
At about 12:30 a.m. Jan. 25, Islamorada Vice Mayor Deb Gillis, who owns a local motel and lives on the premises, called deputies to report she had been beat up by a stranger outside her mile marker 82 apartment.
According to a Monroe County Sheriff's Office incident report, Gillis heard a knocking on her downstairs backdoor. When she opened it, she said a man she didn't recognize grabbed her and began beating her with a stick.
"The man stated it was because he loved her and continued beating Gillis," the report reads.
In a struggle, Gillis ripped the sweater off her assailant, whose only other article of clothing was white boxer briefs. It turned out the sweater belonged to Gillis and was likely taken out of her unlocked vehicle.
When deputies arrived, they found William Roberts, 66, not far from the scene, and Gillis identified the man as her attacker.
Roberts, 66, was charged with aggravated battery and burglary, both felonies.
Deputies later found the wooden end to a plunger nearby, a stick similar to what Gillis described as the tool used to beat her.
Gillis suffered an abrasion just above her lip on the left side of her mouth, according to the incident report. She also had a bloody ear as well as discolored bruising above her left eye.
Gillis told the Free Press the police report is accurate and declined further comment.
Mayor Mike Forster, who had spoken with Gillis, said she is recovering from the incident.
"She is doing fine," he said. "She is a little beat up. It was a traumatizing event."
Forster said he believes Roberts was a customer in one of Gillis' units and described him as "out of his mind."
jgore@keysnews.com
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