Wisconsin

Wisconsin acid attack suspect once held hunters at gunpoint

Published

5 years ago

November 5, 2019

Mahud Villalaz, 42, of Milwaukee gestures to the second-degree burns on his face Saturday November 2, 2019 at a news conference one day after a man threw acid at him outside a restaurant on Milwaukee's south side. He is joined by, from left, state Rep. JoCasta Zamarripa, his sister, and Forward Latino leader Darryl Morin. (Sophie Carson/Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel via AP)

MILWAUKEE (AP) — The 61-year-old white man accused of throwing acid on a Hispanic man’s face in Milwaukee once held four hunters at gunpoint on his Wisconsin property during a chilling encounter.

Clifton A. Blackwell is suspected of attacking 42-year-old Mahud Villalaz Friday night night after accusing him of being illegally in the U.S. and “invading” the country. Blackwell is in custody with charges pending, and the case is being investigated as a hate crime.

The confrontation with the hunters happened on Blackwell’s property in 2006 in Rusk County, a mostly rural area in northwestern Wisconsin. He marched the men to his house with a rifle and demanded money from them, according to court documents and the hunters’ accounts.

Blackwell at one point was found incompetent to stand trial but eventually was convicted of two charges. He was released in 2011.