DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – News 6 has learned that Jermaine Long, the man accused of randomly attacking and slashing a 13-year-old boy’s throat in Daytona Beach over the weekend, had been questioned earlier that day by police for another violent act involving him swinging a sledgehammer at a man.
When police finally arrested Long Saturday night after the attack on the teen outside the Slingshot ride, it was their third time that day responding to incidents involving him in the area around the Boardwalk and Main Street.
[WATCH: Man lacerated child’s neck in random Daytona Beach attack, police say]
Daytona Beach police records reveal Long was trespassed from a location on South Hollywood Avenue around 8 a.m. Saturday. About three and a half hours later, police were called again.
This time, Long was accused of chasing a man and hitting him with a sledgehammer at a 7-Eleven near the Boardwalk. Police made contact with both Long and the victim, but trespassed him and did not arrest him at the time.
Eleven hours later, police received a call that Long had randomly attacked and slashed a 13-year-old boy’s throat near the Slingshot ride.
[Listen to the 911 call below]
Video shared with News 6 shows Long’s arrest for the attack on the teen, after which he was taken to jail on charges of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
Records indicate that after Long was jailed, police filed charges two days later for the earlier sledgehammer incident.
Long is a registered sex offender with a lengthy criminal history in Volusia County. Most recently, he was arrested in January for allegedly trying to hurt two men with a knife and then hitting them with a large pole.
However, prosecutors dropped those charges, and Long was released from jail just four days before the incidents on Saturday.
[VIDEO: Family seeks answers after son’s neck slashed in Daytona Beach by man recently released from jail]
News 6 reached out to the State Attorney’s Office to ask why the January charges were dropped, but has not yet received a response.
Daytona Beach police tell News 6 they are increasing their presence around the Boardwalk with major events like Bike Week coming up and plan to open a new satellite office in a nearby hotel soon to boost safety in the area.
[MORE: 13-year-old describes random attack when man slashed his neck in Daytona Beach ]