An 18-year-old has been accused of stabbing his 81-year-old roommate to death at an assisted living facility in Florida after he allegedly heard voices in his head telling him to kill him.
Moses Ojeda is charged with murder for the killing of Patrick Benway, who suffered “a violent death,” Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said at a news conference on Sunday.
“He stabbed the victim 113 times, and when we asked him during the interview, he confessed why he stabbed him 113 times,” Sheriff Judd said. “He said, ‘The knife wasn’t very sharp…voices in my head told me to kill him.’"
Ojeda had moved into the group home in Bartow managed by ET Home Care a day before the May 18 stabbing of Benway, who was also a resident.
“Moses said that the person he stabbed and killed was a good person,” the sheriff added. “But he was just told that he heard sounds, voices in his head to kill the victim, and that's what he did.”
Ojeda admitted to the authorities that he walked into Benway’s room where he was in bed and stabbed him multiple times. He said his roommate never fought back, but instead asked him, “why would you want to do this to me?”
After the deadly attack, Ojeda cleaned the knife and put it back in the kitchen, he told detectives. He then removed his blood-stained clothing and placed it in his laundry basket.
Ojeda was arrested the same day and charged with first-degree murder and tampering with physical evidence. He admitted to detectives that he had wanted to kill the man because he was “already dying” and that he has no regrets.
All of the evidence gathered was consistent with the suspect’s statements about the stabbing, authorities said in a press release.
Prior to the incident, Ojeda had been evaluated for mental health issues and had been involuntarily committed under Florida's Baker Act six times this year. He was then released back into independent living and placed in a shared room with Benway.
Ojeda’s mother told investigators that she felt unsafe around her son, who has no criminal record, and made arrangements for him at the independent living facility – where she warned the staff to secure sharp objects.
It’s unclear how Ojeda obtained the knife or whether any staff were present during the incident. The facility has not released a statement but is reportedly cooperating with the ongoing investigation, FOX35 reported.
“This was a senseless and tragic act of violence,” Judd said. “Our detectives, forensic investigators, and Bartow Police Department officers worked diligently to take Ojeda into custody and gather evidence to hold him accountable.”
Ojeda is currently in Polk County Jail on no bond.
