A man without a home recounted a terrifying incident where an individual violently removed one of his eyes, savagely attacking him by biting his face and forcing it against the ground.
The attacker, Rudy Eugene, aged 31, assaulted Ronald Poppo in Miami, Florida, after undressing near a causeway and suddenly becoming uncontrollable. Eugene, a Miami resident, exhibited strange behavior and began shouting just before launching the vicious assault.
Eugene proceeded to strangle his victim using wrestling techniques and attempted to gouge out his eyes, citing a “bad day on the beach” as per The Guardian US. In a statement to police in 2012, Eugene claimed, “He attacked me. He just ripped me to ribbons. He chewed up my face. He mashed my face into the sidewalk. My face is all bent and bashed up. My eyes … my eyes got plucked out. He was strangling me in wrestling holds, at the same time, he was picking my eyes out.”
Poppo described his assailant as initially appearing content before suddenly turning violent. He expressed, “For a very short amount of time, I thought he was a good guy. But he just went and turned berserk. He apparently didn’t have a good day at the beach and I guess he took it out on me or something. I don’t know. He turned quite vicious after a minute or two, and he started to rip me apart. He just started to scream. And he was talking kind of funny talk for a while, too. That I was gonna die. And he was gonna die. He must have been souped up on something. What could provoke an attack of that type? I didn’t curse at the guy or say anything mean or nasty.”
Following multiple warnings from the police to cease his actions, Eugene was fatally shot when he responded with growls. Poppo affirmed that he had no prior acquaintance with Eugene and did nothing to instigate the attack.
Initial reports suggested Eugene might have been influenced by dangerous street drugs like bath salts. However, toxicology tests revealed the presence of only marijuana in his system, with no alcohol or prescription drugs found.
Eugene’s family refuted claims of his violent tendencies or substance abuse, stating that he only used cannabis. His brother Marckenson Charles expressed disbelief at Eugene’s actions, highlighting that they were out of character.
Eugene’s girlfriend speculated that supernatural forces may have been at play in the attack, asserting that someone had possibly inflicted harm upon him.
Ronald underwent extensive reconstructive surgery following the attack, leading to the establishment of a foundation in his name that raised significant funds.