NORTH PORT, Fla. — A man was arrested for murder on Friday after stabbing a woman he was pursuing romantically 38 times, the North Port Police Department reports.
It happened back in September, as police were preparing for Hurricane Ian.
Just before 9 p.m. on Sept. 26, officers were called to investigate an apparent murder at a home on South Haberland Boulevard. They said they arrived to find a "gruesome scene" with a woman "bound and stabbed multiple times."
According to police, the woman had 38 stab wounds on her head, torso and groin and was lying on the floor with her hands behind her back and her mouth taped.
After months of investigating, police arrested 53-year-old Michael Douglas. The woman's daughter reportedly told investigators that Douglas had been pursuing her mother romantically while encouraging her to end her current relationship.
Documents show Douglas and the woman were in the process of purchasing a house together when the murder happened, according to the police report.
Investigators spoke to one of Douglas' co-workers who revealed that during one shift, Douglas waved a photo of the woman on his phone and encouraged anyone nearby to look at his "beautiful wife."
Police say they used video, forensic and DNA evidence to identify Douglas as the killer.
Douglas was charged with first-degree premeditated murder and booked into the Sarasota County Jail.
"It is due to hard work and dedication from our agency, which will help our victim's family find some sort of justice for this senseless and heinous crime," North Port Police Chief Todd Garrison said.