A former local police officer who retired early in connection with a Ku Klux Klan scandal has been arrested after an alleged attack on his wife.
David Borst, 54, was arrested Sunday afternoon at his home in Wildwood on charges of battery and depriving use of 911.
The former deputy chief in Fruitland Park made headlines in 2014 when he was forced from his job after his name surfaced in a probe by the FBI. The investigation was turned over to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, which determined the police officer of more than two decades was a member of the KKK.
Wildwood police were called at about 3 p.m. Sunday to Borst’s home in the 500 block of Gray Avenue after receiving a 911 call from Borst’s 15-year-old son. When police arrived, Borst said his son had “misinterpreted” what he had seen.
Borst’s wife told police she and her husband had been arguing and that as the argument escalated, Borst became more aggressive, according to the arrest report. She said her husband, who stands more than 6 feet tall and weighs 240 pounds, poked her in the chest with his finger multiple times as he insulted her. She attempted to leave and told Borst she was going to call the police. She tried to dial 911 from her cell phone, but Borst “slapped her multiple times in the back of the head and her neck,” the report said.
Police noted that she had red marks on her chest, a scratch along the left side of her neck and red marks on her neck and back area.
Borst’s teen son confirmed what had happened and signed a sworn statement.
Borst was handcuffed and taken into custody. He was booked at the Sumter County Detention Center on $3,000 bond.
