SACRAMENTO —Sacramento County deputies arrested a man following a bizarre and brutal attack with a medieval-type weapon early Monday morning, March 23.
The assault of a woman in her 50s happened near the corner of Auburn Blvd. and Garfield Avenue, near Madison Avenue and Interstate 80. She was walking her dog home from her boyfriend’s house at 4:15 a.m. She was attacked with a mace, a Medieval-style weapon that can be described as a club with a spiked ball on the end.
The Sacramento Sheriff’s Department said a patrol deputy was driving on Garfield near Auburn Blvd. when he saw what looked like bodies in the street.
“She was bleeding all over” said witness Lisa French. “[The weapon] had a handle and spikes coming out of it. Bizarre.”
The victim told deputies that a man killed her dog and then came after her with the mace. The dog, described as a chubby dachshund mix, was later found alive. The woman, who had a punctured skull, was taken to an emergency room.
Police arrested Travis Lanning, 34, who witnesses reported didn’t say a word when he was arrested.
“Eight to 10 cops had him on the ground,” said French. “They had his head covered. They tried to get him up. He wouldn’t get up. They ended up carrying him to the police car.”
Investigators believe the attack may have been random. Photos on the suspect’s Facebook page show him posing and smiling with a similar style silver mace. His posts also indicate his interests in Everquest, a popular Medieval-style computer game.
Lanning was booked in to the Sacramento County Jail facing charges of assault with a deadly weapon and mayhem. His first court appearance is March 25 at 1:30 p.m. Lanning’s bail was set at $50,000. Records show Lanning was arrested in August last year for public intoxication.
Read/View more:
KCRA: Deputies: Sacramento woman beaten with medieval-style weapon
Fox 40: Deputies: Man Attacks Woman with Medieval Mace in Sacramento
