DEERFIELD BEACH, Fla. – Two masked intruders beat and robbed a disabled woman who was alone in her Deerfield Beach home Thursday afternoon, killing two of her kittens and threatening to kill more pets if she didn't do what they asked, Broward Sheriff's Office spokeswoman Dani Moschella said.
The intruders, wearing hooded sweatshirts, gloves and Halloween masks, walked in through a sliding-glass door and demanded jewelry and credit cards, Moschella said.
After the woman told them that she didn't have much to steal, the men threw her to the ground and ransacked the house, using shards of broken glass to cut her face, arm and abdomen while demanding valuables, even spraying paint on her body, Moschella said.
In the end, the men left with a safe containing her medication, and two dead kittens in a paper bag.
The woman, identified as Deborah Plasse, said the ordeal lasted between 30 minutes and an hour.
"They just wouldn't stop," Plasse told Local 10 News investigative reporter Ross Palombo in a telephone interview from her hospital bed. "It seemed like forever."
She said another man waited outside.
One of her attackers spoke proper English, while the other had a Hispanic accent, Plasse told detectives.
Plasse was treated at North Broward Health and released Thursday, but she returned Friday for more medical attention.
"When they killed the kittens, I pretty much went numb," Plasse said.
Plasse said the intruders threatened to kill her dog and then her if she didn't give them what they wanted.
"They wanted cash," she said. "They wanted jewelry."
Plasse said the whole time she "was thinking more that I have to get through this."
Gary Williams said he heard a faint cry for help and then found Plasse on the ground by her door. He called 911.
"This is sick," Williams said. "This is just demented."
Anyone with information about the attack is asked to call Broward Crime Stoppers at 954-493-TIPS.
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