MIAMI _ When the rifle beneath his bed failed, a Clearwater, Fla., husband addressed a home intruder going after his wife with a machete _ repeatedly. Fatally.
Steven Aiosa's defense of wife Heather Aiosa ended 31-year-old Robert Alcade's life Tuesday after what Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri described as Alcade's bizarre, bloody final day.
According to Gualtieri, Alcade's neighbors at the apartment complex where he lived called police Tuesday afternoon after they noticed Alcade walking around, acting strangely, claiming people were trying to kill him.
A Clearwater Police officer "determined that Alcade did not meet the criteria of involuntary examination under the Baker Act," Gualtieri said. "He didn't commit any crimes. The officer observed his behavior to be somewhat irrational, but didn't rise to the level for taking him into custody for any offense or under the Baker Act."
Around 2:10 a.m., the Aiosas awoke with Alcade standing in their bedroom doorway after breaking out a front window. When Heather Aiosa told her husband to call 911, Alcade responded that he'd already done that because somebody was trying to kill him.
Alcade began throwing things around the house and trying to climb the walls. The Aiosas went outside. Steven Aiosa managed to grab a .22-caliber rifle he kept under the bed for protection.
"He had trouble loading it because the gun was malfunctioning," Gualtieri said.
The gun's failure sent Steven Aiosa back under his bed, to plan B: the machete.
Meanwhile, Alcade tackled Heather Aiosa in the backyard. Steven took the machete to Aiosa's legs.
"It did not stop him from fighting, even though he had big, open gaping wounds on his legs," Gualtieri said. "The struggle intensified."
At one point during the struggle, Alcade got a hold of the unloaded rifle, Gualtieri said. Pinellas County Sheriff's deputies got the rifle away from Alcade, then used a stun gun on him six times.
"It really had no effect on Alcade at all," Gualtieri said. "This happens. Sometimes, people are under the mistaken impression that a Taser always has an effect."
Emergency medical personnel arrived to take the heavily bleeding Alcade to St. Petersburg's Bayfront Medical Center, 18 miles away. On the way, Alcade stopped breathing. The ambulance changed path, to Northside Hospital, 10 miles from the Aiosa's home but he was unable to be revived.
In March, Alcade finished 18 months in prison for two counts of home burglary. He did just over 22 months from 2005-07 for credit card fraud, battery and eluding law enforcement.
