A deranged Florida man was arrested after he “viciously attacked” an older man at a golf course and then drowned him in a pond.
Around 1:30 pm Monday afternoon, officers with the Palm Beach Gardens Police Department arrived at the Sandhill Crane Golf Club in response to reports of a man attacking another man with a golf club, as reported by local station WPTV.
When they arrived, they found the body of victim Brian Hiltebeitel, 65, on the fairway of hole one, and they also found the perpetrator, 36-year-old Junior Boucher, naked.
“After Boucher refused to stop, police were forced to use an ‘electronic control weapon’ on him and take him into custody,” WPTV notes.
Junior Boucher, 36, is charged with murder in a fatal attack on a golfer at Sandhill Crane Golf Club in PB Gardens Monday. @cbs12 pic.twitter.com/LISSjQFZbo
— Al Pefley (@PefleyAlCBS12) November 26, 2024
According to a witness who knew Hiltebeitel and witnessed some of what happened, he’d been playing on the course when he heard someone yelling, looked up, and saw his friend “retreating” from Boucher, who was “holding a golf club and was swinging it towards [him].”
“Hiltebeitel was yelling ‘he’s trying to kill me’ multiple times,” the witness said.
At some point, the two — Hiltebeitel and Boucher — fell to the ground, and “Boucher began striking Hiltebeitel numerous times with the golf club,” according to a police report.
Hiltebeitel managed to get back up, after which Boucher chased him to a pond on the first hole while continuing to strike him with a club.
“Once the men reached the pond, Boucher jumped on top of Hiltebeitel in the water and ‘appeared to be choking him,'” WPTV notes, citing the police report. “The witness told police that ‘Boucher then got off of Hiltebeitel who was no longer moving and retrieved a golf club and struck him repeatedly in the head.'”
Boucher also reportedly forcibly held Hiltebeitel’s head underwater.
PB Gardens Police say Brian Hiltebritel, 65, was murdered at the Sandhill Crane Golf Club Monday by a man who hit him repeatedly with his golf clubs. @cbs12 pic.twitter.com/p55XxeR4IE
— Al Pefley (@PefleyAlCBS12) November 26, 2024
After evidently murdering Hiltebeitel, Boucher then reportedly walked out of the pond, undressed, and began walking away.
According to the Palm Beach Gardens Police Department, they found Hiltebeitel with “deep lacerations to the back of his head.” He was pronounced dead on the scene.
Boucher is now being held in the Palm Beach County Jail. He was denied bond by a judge on Tuesday and also ordered to have no contact with witnesses. Strangely enough, he told the judge that his real name is allegedly Manuel Acosta Rodriguez and that he’d been the victim of witchcraft.
“At this time, it does not appear that Boucher had any legitimate purpose for being at the golf course,” Palm Beach Gardens Police Chief Dominick Pape said during a press conference Tuesday.
“This appears to be a random act of violence where Boucher used the victim’s golf clubs as weapons and viciously attacked the victim, ultimately killing him,” he added.
A man is charged with first degree murder in what police say was a vicious attack Monday. @cbs12 pic.twitter.com/dOm0FzyHUl
— Al Pefley (@PefleyAlCBS12) November 26, 2024
According to Miami station WTVJ, Boucher boasts “a lengthy arrest record that dates back to at least 2006, when he was arrested for possession of drugs with intent to distribute near a park or school in Westport, Massachusetts.”
He was also arrested for drug possession in 2008, and then for failure to appear in 2009 and 2011.
More recently, last year he pleaded guilty to fleeing a police cruiser, resisting arrest, and committing an offense against a police canine.
“Deputies said Boucher put one of the agency’s K9 units in a choke-hold and attempted to ‘eye gouge’ the dog after leading deputies on a chase across Okeechobee Park to a shopping plaza in Wellington,” according to WPTV.
Strangely enough, Boucher’s family reported him as a “missing person” the same day that the golf course incident occurred.
“Also on Monday, Anna and Kevin Boucher had requested to remove Junior from a bedroom, citing domestic violence erratic behavior, mental health, aggressive behavior, and verbal abuse,” WPTV notes.
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