A YouTube bodybuilder who severely injured a woman has died after being Tasered by officers who were trying to rescue the victim, WBTS-TV reports.
Police arrived to home in Cohasset, Massachusetts, on Thursday night, where 25-year-old Erich Stelzer was attacking 24-year-old Maegan Tapley. Stelzer was reportedly stabbing and slashing Tapley with a knife when officers deployed stun guns to restrain him, according to the Norfolk district attorney’s office.
Paramedics were transporting Stelzer to a hospital when he became unconscious and later died.
Tapley was hospitalized with extensive injuries. She will likely lose an eye, DailyMail reports, but her mother says she will survive.
“She’s going to mend, she’s going to be alright. It’s going to take time to recover,” Susan Tapley said. “She’ll need plastic surgery and an eye specialist.”
Susan Tapley said she feels for Stelzer’s mother, telling the television station, “She just lost her son. My daughter almost died because of his lunacy.”
The two met on the dating app Tinder, Susan Tapley said.
Officials are investigating how the incident unfolded and an autopsy is expected to determine the precise cause of Stelzer’s death. Stelzer’s father, Harold Stelzer, said Tasers were used four times on his son, which the elder Stelzer called “excessive.”
Erich Stelzer was 6-feet-8-inches tall and weighed 300 pounds.
“My son was in that house healthy, and 15 minutes later, he’s dead,” Stelzer said. “I want to apologize to the girl who was assaulted, but until I find out from the police what happened, I’m not making any judgments.”
Neighbors say they are disturbed and shocked by what happened.
“It has to be a once-in-a-lifetime thing you know, especially in this area,” said Ian, one neighbor whose last name was not disclosed by the television station.
Ian said he moved into the neighborhood a month ago and was welcomed by Maegan Tapley, a veterinary assistant.
“Christmas Eve, we just moved in and she came by,” Ian said. “Super nice with a bunch of cookies in her hand and it seemed like she was going to hit the whole neighborhood.”
The incident reportedly occurred at Stelzer’s mother’s house. According to WBZ-TV, Stelzer appeared to have been under an “altered mental state” or was suffering from a “possible mental health issue.”
Stelzer posted various videos on YouTube of himself at the gym, with the most recent recording uploaded a year ago.
[Feature Photo: Maegan Tapley/Facebook; Erich Stelzer/YouTube]
