Pasco man pointed rifle at pool-partiers over noise, deputies say

ZEPHYRHILLS (FOX 13) - A Pasco County man was arrested Sunday night after deputies say he waved a rifle at some pool-goers because he thought their music was too loud.

Robert Rodriguez said he never expected to stare down a gun, especially at a pool party.

"I just froze, I honestly froze," he said.

According to the sheriff’s office, it was around 8 p.m. when Richard J. Savage came out of his apartment in the Columns at Cypress Point apartment complex, upset about the noise at the community pool. That’s where Rodriguez said he was playing music from his truck for his family and co-workers. 

"Probably about five minutes into it, my sister screams out," Rodriguez recounted. "I just turned around and the guy was standing there with a weapon pointed directly at me."

Deputies say Savage was carrying a rifle.  At one point, they say, he racked the slide and pointed it at the group, demanding they "shut it down” before he headed back inside.

10-year-old Keiliany Diaz was at the party, she couldn't believe what was happening. 

"I was in shock mode, why would someone do that for music?" she questioned. "You could've gotten killed at that moment."

The frightened party-goers called deputies, who say Savage admitted pointing the rifle at the group because they wouldn’t turn down the music.

Savage, 52, was charged with aggravated assault and child abuse.