Cops: Man confesses to murder, says ‘I had to put him to sleep’
A 42-year-old man faces a second-degree murder charge in the killing of another man in Ocoee during the weekend, authorities said Monday.
Ocoee Police were called about 7:45 p.m. Saturday to a home on Keaton Parkway and said they found Jonathan Williams lying dead on the floor, having been beaten until his face caved in. Officers determined that Williams had been in a fight with Eric Joseph Turley, of St. Petersburg.
According to an arrest affidavit, Turley had been staying in the house for about a week. A woman who also lived there told investigators she was on her way home Saturday when she got a call from Turley, who asked her not to come home — because he had killed Williams during a fight.
The woman did return to the home, finding Williams lying in a pool of blood, the affidavit said.
Officers questioned Turley, who claimed to have heard “shotgun pumps” during his fight with Williams.
“I put him in a headlock because we were fighting [and] he started to tap,” Turley said while being driven to Ocoee Police Department headquarters, according to the affidavit. “When I started to let go, he got up like he wanted to fight, so I had to put him to sleep.”
“I’m sorry,” Turley added, according to police. “No, I’m not, he deserved it. … I killed the coward.”
Turley was arrested and is being held without bond at the Orange County Jail.