A 77-year-old woman in Mulberry fought off an attacker who broke into her bedroom before dawn early Saturday, ran outside nude while screaming for help, and was then dragged back inside and choked before he fled — setting off a manhunt that ended with deputies finding the suspect showering at a nearby home. The Polk County Sheriff's Office says 24-year-old Axel Antonio Espinal Herrera is now facing a stack of felony charges that could put him in prison for life.
According to a Polk County Sheriff's Office account reported by Daily Ridge, the suspect entered the victim's bedroom around 4 a.m. on August 29, forcibly removed her clothing, and sexually battered her. When she managed to break free and run outside naked, screaming for help, he dragged her back inside and choked her before running off, the outlet reported.
The victim contacted law enforcement immediately after her attacker fled, according to the same account. Deputies moved quickly, canvassing the neighborhood in search of a suspect matching the description she gave.
Suspect Found Showering With Scratches Matching the Struggle
Detectives located Espinal Herrera at a nearby home during that canvass — he was in the shower at the time, the Daily Ridge report states. Officers found clothes matching the description of what the victim had described, along with multiple scratches across his body consistent with her having fought back. The victim later identified him in a photographic lineup, per the same account.
Officers also reported seizing cocaine and drug paraphernalia in Espinal Herrera's possession at the time of his apprehension, according to a statement from the Polk County Sheriff's Office. Drug charges were added to his jail booking record alongside the violent crime counts.
Life Felony Charges and an Immigration Hold
Espinal Herrera was booked into the Polk County Sheriff's Processing Center on felony charges including kidnapping, sexual battery by force, burglary with battery, tampering with evidence and drug possession, the sheriff's office said. Under Florida law, entering a residential dwelling with intent to commit a crime while committing an assault or battery is classified as burglary with battery, a life felony carrying a maximum penalty of life imprisonment, according to legal explainers from Musca Law.
Law enforcement identified the suspect as a Honduran national residing in the United States illegally, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement placed an immigration hold on him following his arrest, according to FOX 13 Tampa Bay. His undocumented status also triggered a one-degree charge enhancement under Florida law, the sheriff's office said. FOX 35 Orlando also reported on the arrest of the 24-year-old man in connection with the assault on the 77-year-old woman.
Sheriff Grady Judd: Among the Worst Cases in the County
Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd condemned the attack in a statement, calling it one of the most horrific crimes we've seen in this county in a very long time. Judd also noted the victim's bravery in fighting off her attacker, according to the sheriff's office.
Mulberry is a small municipality with a 2026 population estimated at 4,701 residents and a median age of 51.4 years, according to World Population Review. The Polk County Sheriff's Office provides primary law enforcement services to Mulberry and five other Polk County cities under a municipal contract, which is why county deputies rather than a local police department responded to and investigated the case.
The attack comes even as countywide crime statistics have trended downward. Uniform Crime Report data released by the sheriff's office in July 2025 showed overall crime in its primary jurisdiction dropped 24.6% during the first six months of 2025 compared to the year before, with violent crime falling 21.9%. Sheriff Judd's office has been vocal in recent months about sex crime enforcement across the county, an effort Hoodline previously covered involving other arrests around the region.
