FORT MYERS, Fla. — A man in Lee County Jail was brutally beaten until he lost consciousness by his cellmate who had been arrested days earlier for murder, raising questions about inmate housing policies.
Watch as Fort Myers Community Correspondent Anvar Ruziev speaks with the attorney of the assaulted man:
Diaz was asleep around 3 a.m. when his cellmate Yanko Romero — a man facing murder charges and on suicide watch — beat him repeatedly in the face, leaving him unconscious on the floor.
The attack left Diaz with severe injuries including a stitched-together nose, and his family said they're uncertain if he'll regain sight in one eye or even keep it.
"Here you have a suspected serial killer that the jail was aware, was agitated, had mental health issues, and they place him in the same cell with a non-violent offender who's on suicide watch. He never should have been there to begin with," Rene Suarez, attorney for Diaz, said.
Under the Florida Model Jail Standards, Chapter 7.4.C states inmates who pose a threat to others "shall be separated and closely monitored." Classification decisions must consider behavior and history of aggression. Suarez claims these policies weren't followed.
"He says that before he fell asleep, he saw that Romero was pacing back and forth, agitated, over and over again. Then he falls asleep and next thing he knows, he's awakened when he's being viciously attacked by Mr. Romero," Suarez said.
Diaz was in jail for a burglary charge. According to police reports, he walked into a Fort Myers car dealership and unsuccessfully tried to drive a Toyota Supra out of the service shop.
Romero, on the other hand, was arrested on charges for a homicide that happened just days prior.
When I asked the Lee County Sheriff's Office if there would be any changes to the way inmates are housed, they responded that the inmates were housed appropriately.
The inmate suspect and inmate victim were housed appropriately in accordance with Florida Model Jail Standards and LCSO policies. These standards and policies resulted in increased monitoring for these inmates; which allowed deputies to respond timely and effectively to remove the suspect, and render medical assistance to the inmate victim.
"The silence that's coming from LCSO right now is deafening, boilerplate statement of, oh, we followed the rules. What rules? Common sense has to reign here," Suarez said.
The Lee County Sheriff's Office declined an interview with Sheriff Marceno and directed us to request their policies from their portal. I will review those documents and continue to monitor the details of this case.
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