FELLSMERE —A 50-year-old Fellsmere man faces aggravated assault and battery charges after deputies say he attacked his wife and another man, then allegedly swung a machete at them during a heated disturbance at their home.
Indian River County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded Sunday, March 15, to a residence after a 911 call reported Adam L. Turney armed with a machete and leaving in a blue Honda Odyssey minivan.
Turney’s wife told deputies the argument started when Turney grabbed her by the arms and pushed her. He then punched several holes in a wall inside the home.
The wife said Turney grabbed a knife and threatened another man before trying to put him in a headlock and punching him while the man sat in the breezeway. She separated the two.
Turney went to the garage, returned with a machete and began swinging it, according to the wife and the other man. They retreated to a breezeway, locked a sliding glass door and told deputies they believed Turney intended to kill them.
Three witnesses at the scene gave statements that matched the victims’ accounts. The wife believed Turney was intoxicated.
Turney left before deputies arrived. Port St. Lucie Police Department officers located him at a home in St. Lucie County the next day, March 16, and took him into custody.
A deputy interviewed Turney at the St. Lucie County Jail. He admitted arguing with his wife and punching holes in the wall but denied attacking anyone or having weapons.
He was booked into Indian River County Jail on Friday morning and is held without bond.
Turney was arrested in 2002, in St. Lucie County, on a battery charge after what he called “play fighting” with a man that turned into a physical altercation. He claimed mixed martial arts training to protect his family and admitted to smoking marijuana. The charge was later dropped.