A Filipino man from Jacksonville, Florida was charged in the murder of a fellow Filipino, an elderly woman named Liwanag Navarro.

The 71-year old Navarro was found beaten to death in her Majuro Drive home on September 7. This crime happened just as authorities in Jacksonville were preoccupied with preparations for the coming of Hurricane Irma.

The suspect, 45-year old Hector Crisostomo Batoon, lived in Navarro’s home as a tenant.

Filipino neighbors were devastated to learn of Navarro’s murder.

“Nakaka-shock, di ba? Kasi di mo naman ini-expect na ganun, na may ganyang insidenteng mangyayari lalo na’t matagal na pala na nakatira daw sa kanila yun. So, talagang wala rin akong masabi tungkol doon,” one of the victim’s neighbors said.

According to authorities, the night before the crime, Batoon wanted to pick a fight with neighbors.

On the afternoon of Navarro’s murder, Batoon was found naked, smeared in blood, and walking around their neighborhood and going back inside the house he shared with Navarro.

Authorities reportedly made contact with Navarro’s family members and when they entered the house, they were horrified with what they saw.

“The detectives we talked to said it was one of the most gruesome scene that they had seen in years. She had been beaten, stabbed and then cut with the long sword. It’s very gruesome, and you never think something like this gonna happen next door to you,” another neighbor said.

Batoon is being held without bond at a detention facility in Jacksonville. He is expected to appear in court on November 8.

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