FLAGLER COUNTY, Fla. – A Florida man stabbed a woman who repeatedly turned down his advances and propositions to pay her $5,000 to have sex with him, according to the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies said the victim and her boyfriend were at a Palm Coast bar named Smiles around 1:30 a.m. Monday when 55-year-old Rene Laso showed up. The victim told deputies Laso had been harassing her for months — so the couple decided to confront him about harassing the woman at work and offering her money in exchange for sex.
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All three went outside the bar to settle the dispute, records show.
Laso admitted to propositioning the woman and referred to her as a “$100 hooker,” which is when the altercation started to escalate and Laso said, “I have a knife and will cut you,” according to the affidavit.
Deputies said the woman suffered a stab wound to her right arm while her boyfriend suffered injuries on his arms, stomach and back.
Customers at the bar kicked over Laso’s motorcycle so he couldn’t leave, a news release said.
Laso claimed the female victim slapped him across the face, although he had no visible injuries, so he called her a “$100 hooker” and then patrons chased him across the parking lot, records show. When asked about the knife that was in his hand when law enforcement arrived, he said that he “didn’t try stabbing them,” according to authorities.
“This case could easily have turned into something much more tragic,” Flagler County Sheriff Rick Staly said. “Alcohol, arguing and weapons are a recipe for disaster. Thankfully the injuries the victims sustained do not appear life-threatening and we hope they can make a full recovery. I understand all of this started because Laso was looking for a date, well, now he has one – with the judge.”
Laso faces two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.