Woman rescues drowning man and discovers he’s wanted for double murder | US | News
The woman who dived into the ocean to save a drowning man learned that he was wanted for double murder. (Image: WFPB)
A woman holidaying in Florida bravely dived into the sea to save a distressed swimmer, but after pulling him to safety she discovered he was wanted in connection with the alleged murders of his wife and her estranged lover.
The woman, known only as Belinda, told WPBF she was walking near Riomar Beach on the morning of March 24 when she saw a man crying for help. According to local reports, he immediately jumped into the water without hesitation.
He instructed the man to roll onto his back and let the waves carry him back to shore, later telling local media that the man complained of fatigue throughout the ordeal.
“So he got on his back and said, ‘I’m tired, I’m tired.’ And I said, ‘Do it! Lie on your back and let the waves carry you, you can do it, come on.'”
However, the man told Belinda that he was “going on a long holiday”.
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Belinda took swift action and brought the man safely back to land. Police footage released after the incident shows him crouching next to the woman after emerging from the water.
The man was later identified as double murder suspect Jesse Scott Ellis, 64, who shot and killed his wife of 13 years, Stacie Ellis Mason, and his married colleague, Danny Ooley, in the parking lot of the Indian River County Main Library in Vero Beach around 7 a.m. that same morning. Mason and Ooley, 56, are believed to be carrying on an affair, according to Vero Beach Police Department officials who spoke at the news conference.
CCTV footage shows the duo, both employed by the Indian River County government, pulling up to the library in separate vehicles before Mason got out of his car and got into Ooley’s.
Moments later, Ellis entered the parking lot armed with an AR-15-style rifle and fired a volley of shots at Ooley’s vehicle, Vero Beach Police Chief David Currey told reporters before fleeing.
The woman who dived into the ocean to save the drowning man learned that the man was wanted for double murder. Facebook (Image: Facebook)
Currey said he soon noticed a man entering the water fully clothed, but when emergency responders arrived on scene, they concluded the man, who later turned out to have a fake name, did not need any assistance.
A search of Ellis’ truck revealed wet clothing, an empty holster and a .380-caliber magazine. The vehicle was found in South Beach Park.
Police confirmed that a number of documents were also seized showing that the man intended to commit suicide. Some of these documents were “pages long, dating back to the beginning of March” and described “his pain, his desire to crawl into a hole.” He wrote that he could not eat, drink or sleep.
The woman who dived into the ocean to save the drowning man learned that the man was wanted for double murder. Facebook (Image: Facebook)
The suspected killer was still at large on Monday evening and residents were urged to expect increased police presence in the area as efforts to find Ellis continued.
After rescuing Ellis and later learning he was wanted for murder, Belinda maintained that she would have pulled Ellis from the water anyway, but that she would have contacted 999 immediately if she had been aware of the charges against him.
“No matter what, I can’t leave him in the water,” said Belinda. “Everyone is going through something.”
Ellis’ whereabouts following the incident still remain a mystery. But if he is found alive, he faces two counts of first-degree premeditated murder; this is a capital crime that could result in the death penalty if convicted.
