Man gets prison for strangling taxi driver to death
Man pleads guilty and gets 40 years in prison for killing and robbing Millsboro driver in 2014.
Jessica Masulli Reyes
A 25-year-old man has been sentenced to 40 years in prison for killing William Toomey, a Millsboro taxi driver found dead in his cab in 2014, the Delaware Department of Justice said.
Toomey, 45, picked up Joshua Dutton, a homeless man, at 7:42 p.m. Aug. 20, 2014, in the Rehoboth Beach area. His orange minivan traveled toward Millsboro before stopping on Country Living Road, police said.
Police said Dutton used a belt to strangle Toomey from behind and then robbed him before leaving the cab.
Toomey’s body was found in the van with the doors open after a passerby called 911.
One-time Delaware drug kingpin’s sentence commuted
Dutton was arrested and charged with first-degree murder and possession of a deadly weapon during the commission of a felony. He pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and first-degree robbery.
Judge Richard Stokes sentenced him to the prison time, followed by a year of work release and nine years of probation.
Police: Man tried to choke, kill taxi driver at Florida hotel
by WEAR StaffTue, December 6, 2022 at 12:29 PM
Authorities in Florida say Ricky Wiggins is facing several charges for allegedly choking a taxi cab driver, as well as attacking several other people, at a hotel. (Photo: Escambia County Jail)
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- Florida,United States
- Hospitality_Recreation
- Rickey Wiggins
- Law_Crime
- Lupita
- Contents
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ESCAMBIA COUNTY, Fla. (WEAR) — Authorities said a man is facing several charges for allegedly choking a taxi cab driver, as well as attacking several other people, at a hotel in Florida.
An arrest report notes that Rickey Wiggins, 42, is charged with the following:
- Attempted murder
- Battery – strangulation (two counts)
- Domestic battery – strangulation
- Battery on an officer
- Resisting arrest with violence (three counts)
Authorities in Florida say Ricky Wiggins is facing several charges for allegedly choking a taxi cab driver, as well as attacking several other people, at a hotel. (Photo: Escambia County Jail)
The incident happened Monday morning at Hotel Del Sol.
According to the arrest report, Wiggins, who was a guest at the hotel, began arguing with management and started kicking the door of the business. He then followed a hotel employee and grabbed her neck, but she was able to resist.
The report states Wiggins also chased the hotel manager and “put his hands on him,” but he was able to escape and call police.
According to the report, a Lucky Cab taxi then arrived at the hotel for a customer. Wiggins approached the female driver and told her to drive him to the Washburn Center, which she agreed to even though he wasn’t her customer.
The report states the driver asked Wiggins shortly after to get out of her taxi and wait for another taxi to arrive. He then became upset and started attacking her from behind, placing his hands around her neck and choking her.
The driver was able to escape from Wiggins and run to Lupita’s Mexican Restaurant next door, according to the report, but he chased her, tackled her, and began choking her again as if to kill her.
The report states three witnesses jumped in and helped free her from Wiggins.
Multiple deputies arrived at the scene and took Wiggins into custody, but not before he violently resisted arrest, according to the report. Two deputies suffered injuries and were treated by paramedics.
Wiggins was booked into Escambia County Jail without bond.
Prosecutors: Suspect strangled cab driver stole car and led police on high speed pursuit
2019 mug shot of Rackleff Courtesy Washington County Sheriffs Office
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- Cab driver
- Attempted murder
- High speed pursuit
- Portland
- Sean Calvin Rackleff
- Robbery
- Assault
A 43-year-old man is facing attempted murder and several other charges in connection with an incident Friday in downtown Portland.
According to court documents, Portland Police responded to a stolen vehicle in progress call at SW 18th and Columbia Avenue.
Officers found a distraught man leaning against a car with a bloody scrape on his left forearm.
The man told police he was choked by a passenger that he was giving a ride to in his cab.
He said he picked him up at St. Vincent Hospital and that 15 minutes into the ride, the passenger asked him to exit. The alleged victim said he could not do that because the ride had been arranged by a service rather than the passenger, so he had to complete the ride.
That enraged the passenger, who reached over the front seat and began choking the victim.
The incident was captured on the cab’s dashcam, and the suspect is heard saying “I’ll f*** you up m-f, you’re gonna die b**ch.”
The cab driver eventually got loose and was able to exit the vehicle.
Police say the suspect, identified as Sean Calvin Rackleff, took off in the car and drove southbound on I-5 towards Wilsonville with Oregon State Troopers and Clackamas County Deputies in pursuit.
Speeds reached 90 miles per hour, and police spiked the car and also performed a PIT maneuver to stop the vehicle.
Rackleff then bailed out of the car, hopped over a fence, and was then taken into custody in a nearby field.
Rackleff was arraigned Monday on 11 charges of including attempted murder, robbery, and assault. He was ordered held without bail and is due back in court on April 1.
