A career criminal is accused of murdering a golfer on a Florida course in a ‘random act of violence’ that saw him beat the victim with golf clubs and drown him in a pond.
Junior Boucher, 36, is now being held without bail at the Palm Beach County Jail on first-degree murder charges in the death of Brian Hiltebeitel, 65, at the Sandhill Crane Golf Club in Palm Beach Gardens, WPTV reports.
Police said they responded to the scene just before 1.30pm Monday after getting reports of a maniac attacking another man with a golf club.
When officers arrived to the golf course, they found Hiltebeitel’s body on the fairway of hole one and Boucher, who was naked, fleeing the scene.
When he then refused to stop, Palm Beach Gardens police said they were forced to use an ‘electronic control weapon’ on him in order to take him into custody.
During an ensuing investigation, police spoke to one witness who said he was playing golf with two others – including Hiltebeitel – on the first hole when they heard Boucher yelling, according to WBPF.
Hiltebeitel then tried to back away from Boucher, who at that point was ‘holding a golf club and was swinging it towards Hiltebeitel,’ a police report says.
‘Hiltebeitel was yelling “he’s trying to kill me” multiple times,’ it says the witness told police.
Junior Boucher, 36, is being held on first-degree murder charges in the death of Brian Hiltebeitel, 65, at the Sandhill Crane Golf Club in Palm Beach Gardens
Police who arrived on the scene later found Hiltebeitel with ‘deep lacerations to the back of his head’ and was pronounced dead at the scene, despite life-saving measures
Soon, both men fell to the ground, at which point, Boucher allegedly began striking Hiltebeitel multiple times with the golf club.’
He then allegedly chased the victim toward the pond on hole one, striking him ‘repeatedly’ in the head with the golf club, and once the men reached the water, Boucher jumped on top of Hiltebeitel and ‘appeared to be choking him.’
Hiltebeitel eventually stopped moving, at which point Boucher allegedly retrieved one of the victim’s golf clubs and struck him repeatedly in the head.
Boucher then got out of the water, stripped off his clothes and began to walk away, the witness said.
Police who arrived on the scene later found Hiltebeitel with ‘deep lacerations to the back of his head’ and was pronounced dead at the scene, despite life-saving measures.
They said it does not appear Boucher had any motive for attacking Hiltebeitel.
‘At this time, it does not appear that Boucher had any legitimate purpose for being at the golf course,’ Police Chief Dominick Pape said at a news conference Tuesday afternoon.
‘This appears to be a random act of violence where Boucher used the victim’s golf clubs as weapons and viciously attacked the victim, ultimately killing him.’
Police Chief Dominick Pape said the attack Monday ‘appears to be a random act of violence’
Police said they responded to the scene just before 1.30pm Monday after getting reports of a man attacking another man with a golf club
Boucher claimed in court Tuesday he was the victim of witchcraft when he attacked
Just hours before the brutal attack, his relatives, Anna and Kevin Boucher, requested police assistance to remove him from a bedroom at their home, citing domestic violence, erratic behavior, mental health, aggressive behavior and verbal abuse.
It is unclear whether Boucher was under the influence of any substances at the time of the attack.
But as a judge denied Boucher bond on Tuesday, the suspect claimed he was the victim of witchcraft, Local 10 reports.
Boucher has a criminal history that dates back to at least 2006, when he was arrested for possession of drugs with intent to distribute near a park or school in Westport, Massachusetts, NBC Miami reports.
Boucher was then arrested again for drug possession in 2008, and was re-arrested in 2009 and 2011 for failure to appear.
In 2018, Boucher was once again arrested for domestic battery, and in 2022, he was arrested for fleeing and eluding, battery on a law enforcement officer and resisting with violence.
Deputies with the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office said he put one of the agency’s K9 units in a chokehold and attempted to ‘eye gauge’ the dog, after leading deputies on a chase across Okeechobee Park, according to WPTV.
Boucher wound up pleading guilty to the charges, and served about 230 days at Palm Beach County Jail and completed 115 hours of community service after enrolling in a program with a nonprofit.
Brian Hiltebeitel would typically go golfing in the morning, but on Monday morning he was busy helping a friend – and had to delay his golf game until the afternoon, when Boucher allegedly attacked
Hiltebeitel’s longtime girlfriend Dina Lauro described him as ‘just such a good, good person’
Meanwhile, Hiltebeitel’s longtime girlfriend Dina Lauro said she is struggling to comprehend what happened.
She described him to WPTV as ‘just such a good, good person.’
Lauro went on to say ‘he was exciting to be with, always in a good mood, never depressed’ and would ‘wake up happy.’
The two met at their shared apartment building in Philadelphia, and after Lauro moved to Florida to work as a chef, Hiltebeitel followed her. Together, they opened up Chunkie Dunkie and Dina’s Vegan Deli and Desserts.
On a typical day before work, Lauro said, Hiltebeitel would go golfing in the morning, but on Monday morning he was busy helping a friend – and had to delay his golf game until the afternoon, when Boucher allegedly attacked.
Lauro’s family said they also adored Hiltebeitel.
‘Dina said the other day, she said, “I’ve never been so happy,’ her mother, Nancy Lauro, said. ‘He just made us happy; he was just the best guy ever.’
Dina said the best way to describe how she’s feeling now is ‘numb.’
‘I don’t know how I’m doing,’ she confessed. ‘I’m just taking it moment by moment, that’s what I’m going to do, that’s the plan.’
