Cheriton man gets 12 years time to serve in hot Bleach attack

By Linda Cicoira

A Cheriton man will be about 80 years old when he finishes serving the 12 years in prison he was given Monday in Northampton Circuit Court for throwing two containers of hot bleach on a neighbor last August and beating him with a club that was said to look like an axe handle.

Sixty-eight-year-old Wilbert Junior Freeman Jr. was sentenced to 10 years in the state penitentiary for causing injuries to the victim with acid, lye, or other caustic substances on Aug. 3, 2024. Freeman was given 25 years for wounding the 72-year-old and causing severe or permanent impairments. Thirteen years of the latter term were suspended. The defendant was given another 12 months for misdemeanor assault and battery.

The terms were set to run concurrently for a total of 12 years.

The victim suffered burns, abrasions to the head, and several broken bones in the leg. He is hobbled, still wears a brace, has had multiple surgeries, can’t close his hand, and spent months recovering in an area nursing facility.

Commonwealth’s Attorney Jack Thornton called the offenses too awful and brutal to offer a plea bargain. Freeman could have gotten life plus 31 years in prison.

The victim lived in a camper travel trailer without plumbing in the neighborhood at Holland Circle. He had a roommate who lived on the other side of the trailer with whom Freeman was friends.

Thornton said the victim was squatting to defecate outside on the ground when he heard a twig snap and turned to see Freeman approaching him with the container. The prosecutor said Freeman threw the bleach mixture at him, getting it on the man’s clothing and skin. Thornton said the mixture was heated in a microwave. Freeman came back a second time and again doused Finely before getting the weapon and attacking the victim while he was trying to pull up his pants, wipe his burning eyes, and get away, which he “miraculously” did.