The Seminole County deputies arrested two men Friday for attempting to kill another man with a hammer on March 26 in unincorporated Sanford.
Officials said 18-year-old Julius Bender and 19-year-old Yahaziel Israel, both of Sanford, were charged with attempted homicide, burglary with assault or battery, and armed burglary.
Investigators said Bender and Israel beat the 50-year-old victim with the hammer inside his vehicle and then took him into the woods in the area of Beardall Avenue and Lincoln Street where they continued to attack him. A witness that heard the victim’s cries for help and saw the beating called 911, but Bender and Israel fled from the scene before deputies arrived. The two men left in the victim’s vehicle, abandoning it a short distance away. Deputies found the victim in the woods, barely conscious and with severe head injuries.
A tip received through CrimeLine led investigators to Bender and Israel. Bender was then identified through witness identification, and Israel was linked to the vehicle through forensic evidence. Bender and Israel were booked into the John E. Polk Correctional Facility where they remain on a no bond status.
The victim’s injuries are life-threatening and he remains hospitalized at Orlando Regional Medical Center in critical condition. Investigators continue to investigate the relationship between Bender and Israel and the victim.