A Florida man allegedly attacked a woman who inadvertently entered his property and then shot at her and another person she was with as they fled.
Roman Rawicki, 50, is facing multiple felony charges, including two counts of attempted first-degree murder, false imprisonment, two counts of child neglect without great bodily harm, and criminal mischief of $1,000 or more.
He is also charged with misdemeanor counts of battery causing bodily harm, contributing to the delinquency or dependency of a minor or child, and discharging a firearm on public or residential property.
According to a probable cause affidavit for attempted murder filed by the City of Palm Bay Police Department, the incident occurred on Sunday while an unnamed woman was following another person home for the first time. However, this woman appears to have lost her way “and mistakenly found herself at Rawicki’s residence.”
She started walking up the driveway in the 2000 block of Clover Street Northeast and eventually “realized she was at the wrong address,” but by then, she had been spotted by Rawicki, who was allegedly already on the attack.
“Rawicki was in the driveway and began physically attacking [the woman],” the affidavit reads. The perpetrator allegedly grabbed her “by the arm and wrist, restraining her by holding her arm behind her back in an arm lock, against her will.”
The woman was able to call the person she was following “for help,” according to the affidavit. When that person, who has not been identified by name, ran to Rawicki’s house, Rawicki allegedly “disengaged” her “by throwing her to the ground,” according to the affidavit.
However, the confrontation did not appear to have ended there. Rawicki is said to have gone inside his house, grabbed a gun, and then returned outside to fire at the alleged victims’ vehicle. “As the two fled in the vehicle, they felt the vehicle be hit multiple times by projectiles,” according to the statement of fact.
Rawicki, after being read his Miranda rights, reportedly told police that he thought the woman was a prostitute when she approached him in the driveway and that he “attacked her out of fear for his wife’s safety.” He allegedly admitted to shooting at the two people, claiming he was “in fear of his family’s safety.”
The suspect also called 911 and “confirmed he was the shooter, advising that he has a ‘no soliciting’ sign,” according to the affidavit. However, Rawicki “also expressed understanding that [the woman] was at the wrong house by mistake.”
According to the court document, police officers reviewed video footage that showed the woman approaching the home “in a nonthreatening manner” prior to the attack. As the investigation progressed, detectives discovered more about Rawicki’s situation when the woman entered his driveway.
According to the probable cause affidavit for alleged child neglect, Rawicki was not alone when the woman approached his driveway. His wife and children are believed to have accompanied him. The children were “afraid during the confrontation” and “were present when Rawicki began battering” the woman. When he allegedly began shooting at the vehicle driving away, his children were in another vehicle “only a short distance” away.
Rawicki reportedly attacked the woman, causing bruises on her arm and wrist, and breaking off a bracelet she was wearing during the altercation. Her vehicle was also damaged by bullets, “sustaining a flat tire and bullet defects in bumper.”
Seventeen bullet casings were discovered near the road in front of Rawicki’s house, along with the woman’s bracelet.
If Rawicki is found guilty of first-degree attempted murder, he could face life in prison. He appeared in court on Monday for attempted murder and again two days later for child neglect. It is unclear when he plans to return.
