Florida Man Accused Of Attempted Murder After Choking Cab Driver Following Dispute At Hotel: Sheriff

A Florida man was arrested for attempted murder after authorities said he tried to strangle a cab driver and attacked multiple hotel workers and a deputy.

On Dec. 5, deputies with the Escambia County Sheriff’s Office responded to Hotel Del Sol in Pensacola after receiving multiple reports of a disturbance involving a man attacking two women, WKRG reported.

At a restaurant next to the hotel, deputies found Ricky Allen Wiggins II, 42, allegedly assaulting a Lucky Cab driver. Despite commands to stop, the sheriff’s office said Wiggins failed to comply and they apprehend him by force.

According to an arrest report obtained by the Pensacola News Journal, the incident began when Wiggins got into a dispute with hotel employees and “began kicking the door to the business.”

Wiggins then “grabbed” a female employee “by the neck” when she exited the office, the arrest report states.

The employee managed to get away from Wiggins, and she got into a cab but he followed her. When the cab driver told Wiggins she wasn’t there for him, he allegedly also attacked her, according to the report.

“The victim described Wiggins as being behind her seat, placing his hands around her neck/throat, and then he began choking her,” the report states. "(She) attempted to resist the suspect, but he reached through further and began choking her with his forearm, in a chokehold.”

After deputies detained Wiggins, he was booked into the Escambia County jail without bond, according to the Pensacola News Journal.

In addition to one count of attempted murder,Wiggins also faces two counts of felony battery, two counts of misdemeanor battery, one count of felony battery on a law enforcement officer, and one count of resisting an officer with violence.