Shocking Hatchet Assault in Heated Dispute Over Broken Phone

A Florida man faced the consequences for a violent act against his friend, a situation sparked by a seemingly trivial incident involving a broken phone. Jaquan Sykes, aged 35, was sentenced to two and a half years in prison after being found guilty of aggravated battery with a deadly weapon. According to court documents, Sykes already served 626 days in custody, which significantly reduces his remaining prison time to roughly nine months, barring any unforeseen changes to his sentence.

The incident, rooted in a quest for vengeance, unfolded on January 30, 2022. Sykes had picked up two friends—a man and a woman—shortly before 1 a.m. They drove to an Oneco Rose liquor store to purchase a bottle of alcohol. Upon arrival, Sykes and his male friend exited the vehicle and made their way to the back of the store.

According to the victim’s account to the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office, which was detailed in an arrest warrant reviewed by Law & Crime, Sykes expressed a desire to “talk.” However, the conversation quickly turned violent. Sykes allegedly attacked his friend using a hatchet, which had its handle wrapped in “para cord,” a type of rope initially developed for parachutes during World War II.

Sykes is said to have picked up a man and woman — friends of his — before 1 a.m. on Jan. 30, 2022. The three then drove to an Oneco Rose liquor store to pick up a bottle, and the two men got out of the vehicle and approached the back of the store.

“Jaquan wanted to talk,” the man would later tell the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office, per an arrest warrant reviewed by Law&Crime. But while they stood outside the store, Sykes “attacked” him, reportedly using a hatchet with its handle wrapped with “para cord” — a rope known for being developed for parachutes during World War II.

“He said that he was struck multiple times on his upper body and sustained multiple lacerations to his head,” the court document continues. “He suffered multiple fractured bones and has pins in his body holding the bones aligned.” The report noted that the wounds would require surgery.

“During the attack the victim stated that he heard Jaquan saying he was going to kill him,” the warrant states. As the victim managed to escape Sykes’ strikes, he said he heard Sykes yelling at him, “So now you wanna beg for your life,” the document noted.

“A short time later, Jaquan returned to the vehicle by himself,” the arrest warrant states, saying Sykes told the woman that “she needed to go find the victim and check on him.” She exited, and after doing so, said she saw Sykes drive off.

As he drove away, the now-convicted defendant reportedly yelled out, “That was for breaking my phone.”

The woman then spotted the other man — the victim — seeing that he was “left in the roadway” and had been “battered and cut multiple times with a hatchet.” He had “serious injuries to his arms, torso and head,” the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office said about 10 days later, adding that the victim was transported to an area hospital where he was “expected to recover.”

Both the woman and the victim identified Sykes — otherwise known as “Quan” — as the suspect, the arrest warrant says. The victim said “he believes this incident stemmed over him accidentally breaking Jaquan’s phone on Christmas,” adding that “he has already replaced the phone he broke of his so he is unsure why he would still be mad.”

The court document stated that Sykes “threatened” the witness and victim after the attack. The hatchet was not immediately recovered.