WINTER HAVEN, Fla. (WFLA) — A Winter Haven man found wrapped in plastic was arrested Wednesday after police said he stabbed two men after trying to strangle a family member.
The Winter Haven Police Department said the incident happened around 2:10 a.m. at the Abbey Lane Apartments.
Investigators said 25-year-old William Smith, who lives at the apartment with a family member, got into a confrontation with the family member and attempted to strangle them.
Officers said Smith stopped when two men and a woman knocked on the apartment door. Police said Smith went to the bedroom while the three people entered the apartment and sat down to talk to the family member.
While in the bedroom, police said Smith tried to get the female visitor to come in to talk to him, but she told him he needed to wait.
Officers said Smith continued to ask the woman to come to the bedroom and became more upset when she told him to wait again.
Soon after, Winter Haven police said Smith came out of the bedroom with plastic wrapped around his body and started attacking both men and a dog with a large knife with a rigid blade. Police said the dog belonged to one of the victims.
Officers said the victims were eventually able to run out of the apartment through the back door and Smith ran out of the front door.
When officers arrived, they said they found Smith still wrapped in plastic. The knife Smith allegedly used in the attack was found hidden in a bush.
The men who had been stabbed were taken to a hospital with serious injuries. The dog, a 2-year-old Pit Bull named Bruiser, did not survive.
Smith was taken to the Polk County Jail and faces a host of charges, including two counts of attempted first-degree murder.