Florida golfer attacked with own clubs and drowned in 'random act of violence,' police say (2024)

A Florida golfer was killed in what police are calling a “random act of violence” in which a man allegedly attacked him with his own clubs at a golf course.

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Junior Boucher, 36, has been charged with first-degree murder after allegedly killing Brian Hiltebeitel, 65, on the first hole at Sandhill Crane Golf Club in Palm Beach Gardens on Monday afternoon.

According to local CBS affiliate WPTV, Boucher is accused of “viciously” attacking Hiltebeitel and then drowning him in a pond.

WARNING: Graphic details

“Once in the water, Boucher jumped on top of Hiltebeitel and appeared to be choking him,” a witness told police, according to TMZ. “Boucher then got off of Hiltebeitel, who was no longer moving, and retrieved a golf club and struck him repeatedly in the head.”

According to the outlet, a witness told police that Hiltebeitel yelled several times that his assailant was “trying to kill me!”

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Boucher chased Hiltebeitel before arriving at the pond, where Boucher jumped on top of the victim and “appeared to be choking him,” police said.

Boucher then got out of the water, stripped off his clothes and walked away, the witness said.

Officers said that when they arrived, Boucher was naked and running from the scene.

The accused wouldn’t stop when confronted by police, who said they used an “electronic control weapon” to subdue him.

Police said that Hiltebeitel had “deep lacerations to the back of his head” and was pronounced dead at the scene after attempts at resuscitation.

Police also stated that attack appears to have been random, with Boucher not appearing to have had “any legitimate purpose” for being there.

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“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 told reporters on 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.”

According to reports, Boucher was denied bond in court on Tuesday and was ordered to have no contact with witnesses or to hold weapons.

According to Britain’s Daily Mail, before the brutal attack, two relatives of Boucher requested police assistance to remove him from a bedroom at their home, citing domestic violence, erratic and aggressive behaviour, mental health, and verbal abuse.

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It is unclear whether Boucher was under the influence of any substances at the time of the attack.

NBC Miami reported that Boucher has a lengthy criminal history dating back to at least 2006.

He has previously been arrested for possession of drugs with intent to distribute, drug possession and failure to appear, then later on domestic battery charges.

In 2022, he was arrested for fleeing and eluding, battery on a law enforcement officer and resisting with violence.

According to the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office, Boucher put one of the agency’s K9 units in a chokehold and attempted to “eye gouge” the dog during the incident.

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