Central Florida man found guilty of beating woman to death with baseball bat in motel parking lot

MARION COUNTY, Fla. — A Marion County jury returned with a guilty verdict Wednesday for a man who was accused of viciously beating a woman to death with a baseball bat, even as witnesses tried to stop him.

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36-year-old Chad Anciaux was charged with first-degree murder for the fatal attack on his then-girlfriend, Jennifer Powell.

The attack occurred on November 6, 2020 at the Stage Stop Inn on Silver Springs Blvd.

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According to Anciaux’s initial arrest report, the entire incident was captured by the motel’s video surveillance.

It showed Powell running from their room as Anciaux chased her with a metal baseball bat. Anciaux can be seen knocking Powell to the ground with a blow to the back of the head, then striking her repeatedly in the face and head area with the bat.

At one point, a woman attempted to intervene in the attack, but she was chased away by Anciaux who then walked back to where Powell already laid unconscious, rolled her onto her back, adjusted her head so it was face up, and continued to strike her with the bat in the face and head area at least 10 more times.

According to the report, Anciaux finally stopped the brutal attack and ran away when two more witnesses intervened and confronted him.

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Marion County deputies arrived on scene to find Powell lying on a sidewalk outside one of the rooms with a pool of blood around her head. She was taken to Ocala Regional Medical Center in critical condition and died from her injuries on November 16.

A Marion County deputy who was patrolling the area during their search for Anciaux found him walking less than a half-mile away on Northeast 49th Ave. When the deputy attempted to detain Anciaux for questioning by grabbing his arm, Anciaux grabbed the deputy’s other arm and struck him while trying to shove him away.

Anciaux attempted to run away but was tased and taken into custody.

Jury selection for Anciaux’s murder trial began Monday. After just two days of testimony, that jury found Anciaux guilty Wednesday of first-degree murder. He was immediately sentenced to life in prison.

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Anciaux was also found guilty and sentenced to another five years in prison for resisting an officer with violence. He was given credit for more than three years already served.

“Today’s verdict sends a clear message that acts of violence will not be tolerated,” Fifth Judicial Circuit State Attorney William Gladson said after the trial. “Anciaux will spend the rest of his life behind bars, an appropriate sentence that reflects the severity of this heinous crime.”

According to the State Attorney’s Office, Anciaux previously pleaded guilty and was sentenced to prison on a charge of failure to register as a sex offender in Florida after he was convicted of a prior sex crime in Iowa.

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