Police officials said the 19-year-old man reportedly severely beat his 60-year-old neighbor because he is gay. ”You know why I have to do this. You’re gay. You’re evil. I’m going to kill you.” the suspect told the victim in response to questions about why they were being attacked. During an interview with investigators, the victim reportedly said that he was lying in bed when heard the glass on his front window shatter.
He then got out of his bed and saw the suspect coming toward him. The victim also said that the suspect started hitting him in the head, face and body with the pipe wrench.
The 19-year-old from Illinois, Ethan Dickerson, severely beat the 60-year-old homeowner who was living next door to the teen, according to reports.
The suspect is now facing multiple charges, including: attempted first-degree murder, aggravated battery, aggravated unlawful restraint, home invasion, and a hate crime, according to reports.
WAND-TV reports that this incident occurred right after 5 p.m. Thursday. The responding officer reportedly saw a broken window and heard an individual’s voice from inside calling for help.
Police officials said the officer could only hear screaming and pleas for help which prompted the officer to kick the front door down.
When the officer entered the residence, they saw Dickerson, who was covered in blood, immediately drop to his knees to be taken into custody.
The victim was lying on the floor and suffered multiple lacerations to his head and had a significant amount of blood on himself and the floor.
Investigators reportedly found a pipe wrench on the ground and strands of duct tape, covered in blood, on a chair and the floor, according to reports.
During an interview with investigators, the victim reportedly said that he was lying in bed when heard the glass on his front window shatter. He then got out of his bed and saw the suspect coming toward him.
The victim also said that the suspect started hitting him in the head, face and body with the pipe wrench.
The suspect then duct-taped the victim’s wrists and mouth shut and forced him into a chair in the kitchen, where he was duct-taped to the chair.
The 19-year-old suspect then continued to beat him with the wrench and repeating why he was inflicting the wounds.
The victim was able to free himself when the 19-year-old suspect went to the front porch to get something to eat.
When Dickerson got back inside, the two wrestled over the wrench. The suspect reportedly got behind the victim and started to choke him. The choking continued until the responding officer kicked the door in and arrested the 19-year-old suspect
The victim suffered injuries and was taken to a hospital for treatment. The 19-year-old suspect is being held on $1 million bail. This incident remains under investigation. This is a developing story and it will be updated as new information become available.