Florida Man Breaks Into Nursing Home, Smothers 95-Year-Old Patient To Death With Pillow

A man in Florida was charged with murder Monday for breaking into a nursing home and killing a 95-year-old patient. The incident took place at the Tiffany Hall Nursing Home and Rehab in Port St. Lucie last month.

According to the court documents released Tuesday, the man, identified as William Hawkins, was romantically involved with the patient’s girlfriend. A day before the incident, the accused broke into a building where his girlfriend stayed. He woke her up and said that he would inject insulin into 95-year-old Robert Morell’s feeding tube. The woman, however, told him that she would call the nursing home and alert them about the same.

On Jan. 5, the accused broke into the nursing home and killed the victim by smothering him with a pillow. He then fled the scene. The accused was taken into custody the following day.

Four days later, Hawkins’ sister met him in the St. Lucie County Jail and asked him, “Did you put the pillow over his face?” The accused confessed to the crime and said he had “accomplished his life goal.”

The man was charged with first-degree murder and remained in custody as of Tuesday.