An arrest has been made in the beating of a man who was robbed, pistol-whipped and threatened to have his penis and arms cut off, according to a probable cause affidavit that detailed a violent incident in the McAllen area in which one of two suspects has yet to be apprehended.
McAllen police have charged 20-year-old Travis Clayton Wildeman of Florida with aggravated robbery in the case and have a warrant for aggravated robbery for Tracy Lamar Butler, whose last known address is in McAllen. Butler fled the scene after the assault and wasn’t located in the immediate area.
Police say in the affidavit that officers arrived to an apartment in the 3000 block of Highland Avenue at 4:47 a.m. Saturday as the assault was occurring.
The first officer on scene heard loud voices arguing inside the apartment and knocked loudly, telling them to open the door.
That’s when the officer heard a man screaming, “They stripped my clothes and beat the s— out of me. … They won’t let me out. They robbed me of my stuff and pistol whipped me,” the affidavit stated.
The officer reported the man continued screaming for help. When the officer looked through one of the apartment’s windows, the officer saw a naked man bleeding from his face who yelled, “The white guy and the Black guy that pistol whipped me took off out the back, and the Black guy has a gun.”
Because of the circumstances, the officer said in his report that he pulled his gun and unsuccessfully attempted to kick the door down while hearing two other men in the apartment telling the man who was yelling to “chill out” and move away from the door.
The alleged victim in this case was highly intoxicated and unable to unlock the front door, according to police. When police did make it into the apartment, they reported the man had a 3-inch laceration on his right cheek, a busted lower lip and blood all over his upper chest and face, according to the affidavit.
Responding officers had two other men in the apartment sit on the couch while they cleared it. Those men were not involved and were later arrested for public intoxication because they didn’t live at the apartment.
According to the report, police found Wildeman in a room at the back of the apartment where he was “asleep.” The officers also discovered an unloaded handgun with dried blood on it in that room.
The alleged victim in the case told police he went to the apartment at 4:30 a.m. with his friend, who had invited him to an after-hours party.
He told police Butler and Wildeman remarked about the victim’s watch and necklace, threatening him to either strip off his clothes and jewelry or they would shoot him, according to the affidavit.
“(He) stated Tracy forced him to strip out of his clothing, and take off his jewelry. (He) stated Tracy then handed Travis the handgun and told Travis to point the gun at (his) face. (He) stated Travis pointed the handgun at his face and then was told by Tracy to hit him in the face with the handgun,” the affidavit read.
According to police, that’s exactly what Wildeman did before Butler grabbed the gun and also began to hit him in the face.
“(He) stated Tracy threatened to shoot him in the face and also threatened to shoot him in his penis,” the affidavit stated.
In a follow-up interview with a detective, the man told police he had been at Denny’s with a woman and afterward went to the apartment he believed belonged to the woman.
“(He) stated that he and Mr. Butler were talking and sharing information about one another when all of a sudden Mr. Butler told him that he wanted his chain,” the affidavit read.
When he told Butler no, the man pointed the gun at his face and threatened to kill him, police said.
“(He) stated that Mr. Butler told him to open his mouth and he did. (He) stated that once he opened his mouth Mr. Butler placed his gun in his mouth and told him that he was going to shoot him,” the affidavit read.
That’s when the men beat him with the gun, which had its safety off, before ordering him to strip, according to the charging document.
“(He) stated that he stripped down and was naked at this point and then Mr. Butler told him that he was going to cut off his penis and arms and make him walk out of his apartment,” the affidavit stated.
That’s when police arrived.
As for Wildeman, who was intoxicated, when police found him in the back room, he claimed to be sleeping. He told police he didn’t live at the apartment and had been invited to the party.
According to police, Wildeman wouldn’t say who invited him and when asked about the assault, Wildeman told police he didn’t know anything because he was sleeping.
“I observed Wildeman had blood on the knuckles of his right hand. I asked Wildeman how he got blood on his hand and he stated he gets nose bleeds due to having a hyperactive thyroid,” the affidavit stated.
However, the officer noted that the man’s nose was clean and that he didn’t have any signs of a recent nose bleed, police said.
“I advised Wildeman his nose shows no signs of having a recent nose bleed. Wildeman became uncooperative at that point and would not answer any of my questions,” the affidavit stated.
Wildeman remains in the Hidalgo County Adult Detention Center on a $100,000 bond, records show.
Butler, who has an active arrest warrant against him for aggravated robbery, a first-degree felony, is described as being 6 feet tall and about 200 pounds, and has brown eyes and brown hair.
