A Florida Man Thought A Librarian Disrespected Him. So He Murdered Him With A Machete.

A Florida man recently was sentenced to life behind bars in connection with the cold-blooded slaying of a library director four years ago.

In January 2019, the victim, Dr. Leroy Hommerding, was opening the Fort Myers Beach Library when Adam Soules stabbed him with a machete. Hommerding died in the library lobby from his injuries.

A witness saw Soules run away from the scene and climb onto the rooftop of a nearby business.

Police were able to apprehend the murderer, who confessed to the killing shortly after he was arrested.

Soules told deputies he had been thinking of killing the victim in the days prior to the incident and claimed Hommerding previously disrespected him, but he did not provide more details about what Hommerding purportedly did.

In August 2019, a judge found Soules to be mentally incompetent to stand trial and he was ordered to spend time in a mental health treatment facility.

In October 2020, however, the defendant was declared competent to stand trial and in December 2022, he was convicted of killing Hommerding.

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On Feb. 17, Soules was sentenced to life in prison after being found guilty of premeditated first-degree murder. The state did not seek the death penalty; therefore a life sentence was mandatory.

“Adam Soules will spend the rest of his life locked behind bars where he deserves to be," Lee County Sheriff Carmine Marceno said. "I hope the decisions he made haunt him for the rest of his life."