(WSVN) - A Fort Lauderdale restaurant owner heard rumors a former employee wanted to kill him and his family, but he had no idea how close it would come to actually happening. 7’s Brian Entin has more on this “Troubling Threat.”
Beach Place shopping mall in Fort Lauderdale is packed with tourists. That’s why Christopher Stewart and his wife bought Beach Cafe.
But it came with manager Raymond Rolon, and they didn’t get along with him from the beginning.
Christopher Stewart, restaurant owner: “We got into a little argument about him not cleaning up, and he said, ‘You are not going to handle me like a puppet’ and quit on his own.”
Christopher heard rumors Rolon was upset, but the situation got serious when another nearby business owner, Daniel Drake, told Christopher that Rolon wanted to hurt him.
Daniel Drake, recorded suspect: He kept saying, umm… ‘He’s done. He’s done. He’s done. I’m gonna kill him. I’m gonna kill him.'”
Daniel was alarmed, so he put a cellphone in an umbrella and recorded his conversation with Rolon on the sidewalk on Oct. 10.
Recording: “First thing I’ll do is I’ll go at his legs. Once I get him down, bam. I will hit him so many [expletive] times his light will light up like a Christmas tree. I’m not waiting, bro (laughing).”
Daniel said this is Rolon talking about Christopher and his family.
Recording: “I’m telling you right now, I don’t care if you believe me or not, you will see he is done. I wanted the girl. I was going to get ’em both, but I was like, you know ‘No.’ Actually, I wanted all three, but I’m not going to kill a little baby.”
Less than an hour after this recording, Fort Lauderdale Police said, Rolon shot at a crowd of people outside a nearby bar.
Then you can see Rolon on surveillance video checking the handle of Christopher’s van.
Soon after, officers arrested Rolon at Beach Place. They said he had a loaded revolver on him.
Christopher Stewart: “If I would have known this business came with losing my life, I wouldn’t have bought it!”
Rolon was charged with four counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon without intent to kill, but he was not charged for making threats against his former boss.
The judge set his bond at just $21,000.
Christopher Stewart: “The charges and the bond don’t add up.”
Rolon remains locked up at a Broward County jail, but to get out, he would only have to come up with 10 percent of his bond. That means, for just $2,100, he would be free, and that’s terrifying for Christopher.
Christopher Stewart: “When he gets out, who knows? He might come back and try to, you know, finish the job. You know, kill us, and it’s going to be too late.”
Fort Lauderdale Police have the recording of the threats and told 7News, “Detectives are looking into the contents of the video” and are “actively investigating.”
Christopher said, for now, he’s being extra careful.
Christopher Stewart: “Every time we leave, we have to keep looking over our shoulders to see if anyone is following us.”
If Rolon does bond out, he will have to wear a GPS monitor and will not be allowed to have any weapons.
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