MARTIN COUNTY, Fla. — A woman was attacked by a stranger while walking on a dark stretch of beach in Stuart on Thursday night, authorities confirmed.
It happened around 11 p.m. as the victim was talking on the phone with her sister near Tiger Shores Beach, according to deputies with the Martin County Sheriff’s Office.
“Her sister said it sounded like she was fighting with someone and then the phone went dead. They’ve been calling her for the past five minutes. She’s not responding,” the victim’s husband told a 911 dispatcher. He said he was racing to her last known location - Stewart Beach.
Deputies said they found the woman on the beach with bruises on her neck and face. Investigators described the incident as a random act of violence.
“She was hit first, grabbed on the throat, dragged into the ocean, and then held down as she struggled to try to break free from this individual,” said MCSO Sheriff John Budensiek.
Investigators later identified the suspect as Said Alexander Hernandez Gonzalez. He was arrested Sunday after deputies say he was threatening to kill himself.
Investigators said Hernandez Gonzalez, 26, could not explain why he attacked the woman.
“For some unknown reason, he went into a rage, smacked the phone out of her hand, realized he’d gone too far, pulled her into the ocean and started trying to drown her,” Budensiek said.
Investigators said Hernandez Gonzalez told them he only stopped the attack because he thought the victim was dead.
When asked if he felt remorse, Budensiek said the suspect replied, “No, I don’t feel nothing. That was his response. No, I don’t feel nothing.”
Jail records show Hernandez Gonzalez is facing one count of first-degree attempted murder.
As of Tuesday, he was being held at the Martin County Jail without bond and placed on an immigration hold.
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