"I'll just tell you this much, we're had a lot of contact with him in the past," Johnson said. Johnson noted that Sunday night was far from Howell's first encounter with law enforcement. His arrest report hinted at a possible motive for the alleged crimes.Īfter being taken into custody, Howell told investigators that Hendricks and Huffman “were conspiring to get rid of him” and that “they were going to set him up for something,” the report stated. Howell remained in the Santa Rosa County Jail as of Monday afternoon. They have not been implicated in the crime. Howell’s three children were also inside the residence at the time. Inside, the deputies discovered the bodies of both Huffman and Hendricks, both with multiple stab wounds. “They took him into custody, detained him right then and there, and then went into the house to check to see if there was anybody else in the house.” “The first unit there made contact with (Howell) in the front yard, and he was covered in blood,” Johnston said. “So under the circumstances of this case, we feel that it is appropriate for us to seek an indictment for first-degree murder and we plan to do that in the next few weeks.”Īccording to Johnson, SRSO deputies responded to a domestic disturbance at 2607 Bobwhite Circle in Navarre and arrived at 6:01 p.m. “As you know, under Florida law, only a grand jury can charge someone with first-degree murder. “We reviewed the matter last night and this morning and agreed that it is appropriate in this case, to present his case to a grand jury and seek a first-degree premeditated murder indictment,” Eddins said. “It was one of the most clear and highly disturbing scenes that the sheriff and I have ever seen,” said Eddins, who traveled to the crime the scene with an assistant state attorney Monday night.
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