Boca Raton Police Stop Attack, Erick Diaz Arrested

BOCA RATON, FL (Boca Post) (Copyright © 2023) — Boca Raton Police responded to reports of a woman screaming and found a woman being attacked in her home.

According to Boca Raton Police, officers responded to a Boca Raton apartment after neighbors called 9-1-1 to report hearing an audible alarm along with a woman screaming on Friday, April 28th, 2023.

Police arrived at the front door of the apartment and could hear screaming from within. Officers attempted to make entry into the apartment through the front door but were unable due to it being locked. Officers then heard screaming and a female inside saying “he has a knife.”. Officers then broke the glass door and entered the unit.

Officers entered the apartment, guns drawn, and observed the victim standing on the left side of her living room near the front door, and the offender, Erick Diaz, standing on the right side of the small living room near a laundry basket. At gunpoint, Diaz was ordered to get on the ground, and he complied.

The victim told officers that she arrived home at her apartment at around 2330 hours. As she approached the door, she advised that she heard something and began to open her door slowly; at this point, she advised Diaz then charged at her from around a corner on the left side of her apartment, opened her door, and forced her into her home. While inside the home a verbal argument ensued, and Diaz began reaching for her phone. During the argument, Diaz pushed the victim to the floor and took the phone from her pocket telling her to unlock it. Once unlocked, he then began looking at her messages. With the victim’s phone in his hand, Diaz walked into the victim’s kitchen and retrieved a silver-handled knife with a silver blade. He then approached the victim, who was getting up from the ground and ordered her to turn the alarm off.

After the victim attempted to turn the alarm off, she advised he pointed the knife at her and told her to go into the bedroom which is located at the rear of the apartment. Once in the bedroom, she sat at the edge of the bed facing the door. The male placed the knife down on a table near the bed and denied the victim access to her phone as she received a call from her alarm company as well as text messages.

Diaz then attempted to remove her clothing, despite her repeatedly telling him to
stop. She advised that Diaz pulled down her shirt and bra at the collar and began
kissing her bare breasts. He then began to take off his own clothing.

The victim advised that the male stopped what he was doing upon hearing officers at her front door. As Diaz began putting his pants back on, she explained that she attempted to run out of the bedroom. As she did so, Diaz picked up the knife causing her to retreat into a bedroom corner to the right of the bedroom door. Diaz approached her coming within inches of her but she was able to get away and enter into the living room where she attempted to open the front door for officers outside who were trying to make entry. She explained that once Diaz heard the sound of the rear slider being breached, he placed the knife into the laundry basket.

Police say that Diaz, who appeared intoxicated, was observed as having no shirt on and his pants were on backward. Diaz refused to talk to the Police.

Police also note that Diaz had two prior interactions with the victim the day before which were both documented by separate cases. In the first incident, he repeatedly knocked on her door in an attempt to speak with her. In the second incident, which occurred later in the same evening, Diaz arrived at the victim’s residence uninvited and was repeatedly asked to leave causing a verbal argument to ensue. On that day, Police informed Diaz that he should not return to the residence as it would be considered stalking as he does not live there nor does he have any legal rights to the property.

Diaz was arrested and charged with the following:

• 787.01(1A2) ARMED KIDNAPPING
• 812.135(2B) HOME INVASION WITH WEAPON
• 784.021(1A) AGGRAVATED ASSAULT(DEADLY WEAPON)
• 784.048(3) STALKING CREDIBLE THREAT