Charged: 77-year-old man accused of stabbing roommate to death
Sylvester Taylor
MILWAUKEE (WITI) -- A 77-year-old Milwaukee man has been criminally charged, accused of stabbing his roommate to death.
Sylvester Taylor is facing one count of second degree reckless homicide for the stabbing death of 50-year-old Gregory Tumidajewicz.
A criminal complaint filed against Taylor says that police responded to a residence near W. Groeling Avenue and N. 13th Street around 10:15 p.m. Sunday night, March 8th in response to a subject with a weapon call.
Upon arrival, police spoke with Taylor, who stated that his roommate Gregory Tumidajewicz came to the house and was "acting crazy." Taylor stated that Tumidajewicz had a knife and broke the front door with a chair. Taylor then stated that he thought Tumidajewicz had left out the back door of the house.
Shorting after arriving on scene, police found Tumidajewicz unresponsive on the kitchen floor with a stab wound to his chest. The officers at the scene started CPR until the arrival of fire department personnel. Tumidajewicz was pronounced dead at the scene.
Taylor told police that he was at home on a bed when Tumidajewicz came to the house and "just went crazy." When asked what happened, Taylor stated that he didn't know because it happened so quickly. He further stated that he didn't want to talk anymore without an attorney, according to the complaint.
After that conversation, the officer went into Taylor's bedroom to get him a pair of shoes. While doing that, he saw a "dagger-style" knife next the bed Taylor said he had been on just before the incident. It appeared to the officer that the knife had a blood spot on the handle.
On March 9th, an autopsy was performed. According to the complaint, Tumidajewicz sustained superficial stab wounds to the left upper chest, left upper arm and right forearm. A contusion to the right upper chest and abrasion to the left elbow. The Medical Examiner also observed a stab wound to the chest. The estimated length of the wound was seven inches deep.
If convicted, Taylor could face up to 25 years in prison a $100,000 fine, or both.