Saturday, April 05, 2008

Drunken Bum Dies Scaling Fence

A panhandler died climbing over a 6-foot-tall chain-link fence while drinking beer and walking with his girlfriend from their begging site to their homeless camp, in Homestead, Florida. Juanito Pepe Garcia, 51, died Tuesday night from accidental strangulation after he fell and a strap of his heavy backpack became snagged on a top bar of the metal fence. His girlfriend, 38-year-old Kelli Jo Barkley, told police she was with him when he became trapped and told her "Ayudame cojones! Apurate, puta come-mierda! Helpy me!" according to a Homestead Police Department report. Barkley said she tried for several minutes to free him but couldn't lift the backpack. When Juanito became limp, she ran and banged on the door of a nearby home. A man who lives there called 911 to report the woman's cries that her friend was stuck on the fence and might be dead. The Homestead Fire Department and police rushed to the scene.

When a police officer arrived, Barkley waved him down and pointed to the fence. The officer found Juanito hanging with his arms limp and not breathing, the report said. His arms were through their straps and his neck was caught on the full-frame pack's chest strap, the report said. Firefighters cut through the locked fence gate to the other side and pulled Henry down. Paramedics tried to resuscitate him in an ambulance before he was pronounced dead about 10:35 p.m. Barkley said they'd been drinking beer after "flagging" for money at Campell Boulevard and U.S. 1, the report said. She said they'd climbed the fence to take a shortcut to a nearby homeless camp. In the backpack, an officer found about a dozen 40-ounce bottles full of beer, the report said.
Commentary: Those panhandling bums use the money strictly for buying booze. One less annoying bum at the intersection asking for money and stinking like rotten trash. Another Darwin Award Winner!! Congratulations! Que sapingo!