IRCSO: Man charged with murder in January stabbing of man outside funeral home
INDIAN RIVER COUNTY – An investigation into the January stabbing death of a 73-year-old homeless veteran led to the arrest of another homeless man.
Sheriff's deputies found the body of David “Hippee” Schultz outside a Gifford funeral home off Old Dixie Highway where he sought shelter following a round of storms Jan. 15.
Deputies spoke with Schultz two days earlier at the Stone Brothers Funeral Home, where he told them he had permission from its owners to sleep under an awning, according to law enforcement reports.
Records show that just after midnight Jan. 16 deputies monitoring the area were alarmed by blood on the ground and found the body covered by a blanket with what medical examiners determined were 12 neck-area stab wounds.
Later that day around 2 p.m. detectives found Eugene Bain, 65, inside a storage area of an old fruit packing facility in the 4400 block of U.S. 1.
“He actually had our victim’s cell phone in his hands,” Sheriff Eric Flowers said Wednesday during a news conference at the Sheriff's Office.
Flowers said Bain confessed to detectives Monday in a hospital-room, roughly a month after his March 25 release from jail on charges of trespassing and failing to appear for a court date.
Flowers said theft was the suspected motive for the killing and that Bain was robbing (Schultz) as he slept and, “(Schultz) woke up (and Bain) stabbed him.”
According to records, a backpack, cell phone and a moped-style scooter, all belonging to Schultz, were found by detectives the same day. The scooter was abandoned off 39th Street.
Bain was charged with first-degree murder, burglary of a structure with assault or battery, grand theft and tampering with evidence.
The arrest was the result of what Flowers said was “good, old-fashioned police work.”
How detectives made their case
An arrest warrant affidavit states that detectives spoke with several people who said they saw Bain the night of the homicide, including owners of a rooming house in the 4400 block of 31st Avenue where Bain was said to be that night.
A backpack was found in the backyard and inside the bag was a black shirt with writing “Army Veteran David,” and a cell phone charger.
The next week on Jan. 23 detectives returned to the home and further searched a wooded area behind the fenced yard and found a “black handle steak knife” said to be within throwing distance of the backpack.
Detectives gathered video surveillance from homes and businesses and constructed a timeline and map of his movements both before and after the suspected time of the murder, which was thought to be some time before 6 p.m.
Detectives spoke with Bain April 9, when they revealed Schultz’s blood was found in a DNA profile match of samples taken from Bain’s fingernails.
Bain said Schultz's body was at the funeral home and covered by a blanket, and a backpack was on the scooter. He took the backpack and “fled the scene.” He took the phone that was in the backpack, then discarded the backpack.
He told detectives he went back a second time to the funeral home to take and sell the scooter. He said he had to get the keys off the body and lifted the (blanket). He said that might be how he got blood on his hands.
On April 30 detectives again met with Bain, and he told them he had seen Schultz before Jan. 15 at the funeral home. But on that day, he said he walked behind the building to ask for a cigarette “with no intention of stealing anything,” and Schultz “began yelling and cussing.”
Detectives asked Bain what happened and what he did with the knife. Bain said “I don’t know what happened,” and, asked if he “just snapped,” he said: “Seems like it. I just lost it.”
Bain told detectives he was sorry and apologized for what happened, according to records.
In talks with those who knew Schultz, including family members, detectives learned he had lived in Wisconsin and after he left home … had been transient most of his life.
Flowers said Schultz was known in the area as “Hippee Dave,” and said he was allowed to sleep at the business because he did not litter and was considerate of the property owners.
Bain previously served 13 prison sentences on 21 felony convictions, Flowers said.
Corey Arwood is a breaking news reporter for TCPalm. Follow @coreyarwood on X, email corey.arwood@tcpalm.com or call 772-978-2246
This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Arrest made in January fatal stabbing in IRC of homeless vet, 73
