Man threatens to kill woman with sword after smoking meth in Flora City, deputies say
Courtesy: Citrus County Sheriff's Office
FLORAL CITY, Fla. - A 35-year-old man faces aggravated assault charges after allegedly threatening to kill a woman with a sword on East Emerald Lane in Floral City on Thursday afternoon.
Citrus County Sheriff standoff
What we know:
CCSO said they received a call after 2 p.m. regarding a man acting erratically and violently, threatening a woman with a sword.
Joshua Batchelor, 35, was reportedly seen using drugs inside a residence on East Emerald Lane in Floral City.
According to the victim, Batchelor used a baseball bat and a sword to threaten her. The victim said Batchelor had been smoking methamphetamine from a pipe inside the home.
Deputies said Batchelor was pacing through the home with an object in his hands. Due to the violent behavior and weapons that were reported, patrol deputies, a SWAT Team and trained crisis negotiators responded.
SWAT members were eventually able to get inside the home and arrest Batchelor.
CCSO said based on the victim's statements that Batchelor threatened to kill her while armed with a sword and throwing it at her, deputies determined probable cause to charge him with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
The Source: The information in this story was gathered from the Citrus County Sheriff's Office, which detailed the arrest and response in an official statement.