A Florida man was arrested and taken into custody Monday following an attack that happened months ago, during which he was seen on surveillance video wielding a samurai sword during an argument over a wheelbarrow.
According to the Broward County Sheriff’s Office, 54-year-old Curtis Miller is facing attempted murder charges for his conduct during the altercation that took place on July 15, reported Fox News.
Keyla Concepción, a spokesperson for the sheriff’s office, said in a press release, “On Sept. 23, members of the Violence Intervention Proactive Enforcement Response (V.I.P.E.R.) team located him at a home in North Lauderdale and arrested him without incident.”
In the surveillance video recorded on the evening of the attack, Miller is seen approaching a man on his front lawn. Miller then pulls the sword from its scabbard and starts attacking the man.
The owner of the property, seen in the video defending himself while trying to retain possession of his wheelbarrow, was identified as Todd Beavers.
Beavers told WSVN in an interview, “When he pulled out the sword, I thought, ‘What am I doing?’ I thought, ‘Is he really going to do this?’ I couldn’t believe that he was really gonna try to kill me for a cart.”
Beavers had allegedly been out jogging when he noticed a pile of discarded items that appeared free for the taking, Miller is said to have noticed the items at the same time.
“(Miller) apparently felt that he was there first, so he should have first dibs at anything that was in the pile…Evidently, the jogger felt differently,” said Concepción.
After the initial altercation, Beaver began jogging home before noticing that Miller had been following him, “I turned behind me, and he had a sword out, chasing me, so I just kept running,” said Beavers.
A second altercation soon ensued in front of Beavers’ home, during which Miller used the sword in an attempt to take the wheelbarrow. After Beaver pointed out the surveillance camera to Miller he eventually left without the wheelbarrow.
According to deputies, Miller told Beavers he would return before leaving.
Valerie Lyons, a neighbor of Beavers who witnessed the altercation, says she was across the street when it occurred.
“It was crazy, ’cause he was definitely hitting my neighbor with a machete over a wheelbarrow,” she said.
A woman later came and took the wheelbarrow from Beavers’ property claiming it was stolen from her yard during a garage sale she was having.
“I said, ‘You know what? You’re on camera. You want to take the cart? Do it right in front of the camera,’ and she did it,” said Beavers.
The woman seen taking the wheelbarrow on the surveillance video was later identified as Alice Bolden.
“That was my wheelbarrow … and I have neighbors that can verify that because I asked them today if they wanted to buy some stuff also,” she said.
Beavers went on to say, “I really regret it. By the time I got here with the cart and he was still chasing me, I felt like, ‘What did I get myself into for a stupid cart?’ I don’t even need it. I just felt really stupid about it.”
