Hatchet-wielding man arrested in Fanning Springs
Holder's mugshot and photo courtesy of LCSO.
Levy County Sheriff's Office (CCSO)
At 8:16 a.m. on Wednesday morning, March 22, 2023, the Levy County Sheriff’s Office 911 Center received a panicked emergency call from a person who reported that a man in Fanning Springs, Florida was walking on the Nature Coast State Trail, waiving around a hatchet, behaving in an erratic manner. The caller was concerned that the man, who was walking toward a business office near occupied camper trailers, could potentially harm someone.
Deputies arrived on scene and confronted the man - later identified as 36 year-old Rayford Delton Holder of Lake City, Florida - walking down the trail.
According to LCSO Lt. Scott Tummond, deputies saw Holder tuck the hatchet into his rear waist band, in an attempt to hide it, and he then adopted an aggressive stance, balled his fists and exclaimed, “I am a God!” Holder turned around and fled from deputies, heading toward a convenience store that was open for business.
Fearful that Holder, who was still armed with the hatchet, might harm someone, Deputy Nelson Macias and Sergeant Tom Martin gave chase. Deputy Macias used his patrol vehicle to block Holder, and Holder pulled the hatchet from his rear waistband and began running toward Deputy Macias’s patrol vehicle, bounced off it, and then ran into an adjacent wooded lot.
Additional LCSO deputies and officers with the Chiefland Police Department (CPD) arrived on scene to assist the officers already on scene. CPD officers, Chief Scott Anderson and Lt. Macy located and confronted Holder on a nearby road. When ordered to by law enforcement personnel, Holder dropped the hatchet and surrendered.
Holder was found to be in possession of methamphetamine, which Holder claimed were to treat his ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder). He also told deputies that he was a "superhuman angel," and although he didn’t want to, he could hurt them if he wanted.
Holder was booked into the Levy County Detention Bureau, charged with two counts of aggravated assault of a law enforcement officer, resisting arrest with violence, and possession of methamphetamine. His bond was set at $65,000.