ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – A licensed mental health counselor was fatally stabbed at her office and another man was injured Monday night after a former client attacked them inside the counselor’s office on Lee Road, according to the Orange County Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies were called around 9 p.m. to the 900 block of Lee Road, near Adanson Street, where they found Rebecca White, 44, suffering from multiple stab wounds. White was taken to a hospital, where she later died from her injuries.
A second victim — a man in his 30s — had just finished a therapy session with White and was also stabbed. He was taken to a hospital in critical condition and underwent surgery. Deputies said he is expected to recover.
“It’s horrific,” said Penny Mercier-Thomas, who lives nearby. “It’s nothing but a tragic story in many ways.”
[VIDEO: 1 dead, 1 critically injured in stabbing on Lee Road in Orange County]
The man told investigators before being taken into surgery that after his session ended at 9 p.m., a man entered the office demanding to speak with White.
Deputies later identified him as Michael Smith, 39, a former client of White’s. White confronted Smith and told him to leave, investigators said. When the male victim said he was calling 911, Smith pulled out a knife and attacked both victims.
[VIDEO: 1 dead, 1 critically injured in stabbing on Lee Road in Orange County]
The sheriff’s office later said that deputies responded around 7:45 a.m. Tuesday to the 9000 block of Windy Ridge Road, where they found Smith dead from an apparent suicide.
The loss has devastated White’s clients and the surrounding community.
“Emotionally, I think it’s a hole that will never be filled,” said Patrick Floto, who said White had been his therapist for three years.
Floto said he left work and drove to the office after hearing the news.
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“I had to make sure it wasn’t true,” he said. “But it is.”
He said he had spoken with White earlier in the day about scheduling a session and described her as someone who held her clients accountable and helped them grow.
“She would help you clarify your goals and hold you to them,” Floto said. “I think the world is a worse place without Rebecca in it.”
A GoFundMe was set up to assist with expenses for the man who survived the stabbing attack. Click here to donate.