DAYTONA BEACH -- The prison inmate suspected of killing a corrections officer was charged with first-degree murder.
Enoch Hall appeared before a judge Thursday, just hours after investigators said he ambushed and then stabbed Donna Fitzgerald at the Tomoka Correctional Institution in Daytona Beach.
Investigators said Hall formed a piece of sheet metal into a knife and then attacked Fitzgerald after he was able to sneak away and into a maintenance shed.
Fitzgerald lived in Port Orange, and leaves behind a 20-year-old son.
Her neighbors said the whole thing is simply unbelievable.
"It takes the breath out of you," said Ben Begandorf, a neighbor.
"It's a little shocking. When Kyle came over last night, I didn't believe it at first. I didn't know what was going on," said Jason Harwood, another neighbor.
Hall was currently serving a life sentence at the prison for a conviction nearly 15 years ago on sexual battery and kidnapping charges from Escambia County, the state's westernmost county.
Hall was also serving a 30-year sentence for a battery with a deadly weapon charge.
He was moved to a secure spot of the Daytona Beach prison, and will reportedly be transferred to the maximum state security prison in Starke.
There are reports Fitzgerald was also raped during the attack. For now, deputies aren't confirming that actually happened.
Authorities said it was the first time an officer was killed on duty at the Tomoka Correctional Institution, but they did not say exactly how Fitzgerald was killed.
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