HIALEAH, Fla. – An 80-year-old homeless man was arrested Sunday after he attacked another man with a machete in the parking lot of a Hialeah shopping center.
Guillermo Bejerano was arrested on a charge of attempted second-degree murder and multiple counts of aggravated battery.
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Hialeah police said Bejerano believed the victim, identified Monday as Emerito Lopez, 70, stole his cellphone. He admitted to slashing the Hialeah man several times with a machete.
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According to the police report, a witness said he was standing next to Lopez when Bejerano accused Lopez of taking his cellphone. Lopez said he didn't have Bejerano's phone, but Bejerano said he was going to kill him and pulled the machete out of his shopping cart, slashing Lopez on the head, face and arms.
In an interview with detectives, Bejerano said he and Lopez were sitting on a bench outside of Sedano's when Bejerano noticed that his phone was missing. Bejerano claimed Lopez had his phone and refused to give it back, so Bejerano got upset and attacked Lopez with the machete.
After the attack, Bejerano went inside Sedano's and told a security guard to call the police because he had killed someone, the report said.
Lopez was airlifted to Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami to be treated for his injuries. He is expected to survive.
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