Patrick Douglas Scruggs is a former January 6 federal prosecutor who is accused of stabbing a man during an incident with other motorists on a Florida bridge.
Scruggs is charged in Pinellas County, Florida, with aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, armed burglary, and aggravated assault, according to court records.
His attorney has filed a not guilty plea, court records say.
A woman named Tara Jex Iglinski posted, and then deleted a series of photos showing a man with a knife and describing what she said occurred. Screenshots of the post are on social media.
“I just want to make clear, I did not see him stab the knife – I saw him holding the knife and I saw the arms of the guy sticking out the window like he was pleading for help- and his arms were all cut up,” she wrote.
“His actions speak to his actions and his actions only,” Florida Highway Patrol Sgt. Steve Gaskins said to Fox13. “We don’t ever want to see someone get out and, you know, commit some kind of violence like this, whether it be at a home, a restaurant, or on the highway.” The victim has serious, but not life-threatening injuries, according to Fox13.
Here’s what you need to know:
1. Patrick Douglas Scruggs Is Accused of Breaking a Man’s Car Window & Stabbing Him With a Pocketknife
Facebook (Tara Iglinski)Patrick Scruggs incident.
According to Iglinski’s post, she “took the photos and noticed the knife in the guy’s hand, and that there was blood all over both of them. I don’t know what happened before I got there or what happened after I was able to get around them.”
She added, “I just saw an accident on the Howard Frankland bridge, and I have no idea what in the world was goin on there – it appears one guy has a knife in his hand and he was cutting up the arms of another guy in the car next to him. What is goin on in the world? So sad. I just hope everyone is going to be ok.”
In a news release obtained by Tampa Bay Times, the Florida Highway Patrol revealed that a man, 40, of Tampa, Florida, was driving southbound on Interstate 275 with his wife when they noticed a driver slumped over in a travel lane of a bridge. Fox13 called this couple “Good Samaritans.”
According to the newspaper, it was 9:24 a.m. The man and his wife pulled over to try to help but could not get inside the vehicle, so he walked to his car to “get something that could break the window,” the police news release said, according to the Times.
At that point the man in the stopped car woke up and accelerated into the couple’s sedan. While trying to get around their vehicle, he struck Scruggs’ sedan “as he was driving by the scene,” the newspaper reported, citing the news release.
“Scruggs pulled over, got out and walked up to the driver of the vehicle that hit his car. According to the Highway Patrol, Scruggs broke a window and started stabbing the 35-year-old man with a pocketknife,” the report said.
Scruggs is also accused of trying to stab the other couple, who tried to intervene to stop the man from being stabbed, the Times reported.
Heavy has contacted the Florida Highway Patrol for the news release. A police officer was driving past and arrested Scruggs, the Times reported.
2. Patrick Douglas Scrugg Was a Prosecutor in Manhattan Before Working for a Decade as an Assistant United States Attorney in Florida
LinkedInPatrick Scruggs
On his LinkedIn page, Scruggs wrote, “I am a seasoned litigator and investigator with experience in various practice areas of criminal law, including export control/compliance, internal investigations, white collar defense, national security, and cybercrime matters.”
For more than 10 years, “I served as an Assistant United States Attorney for the U.S. Department of Justice in the Middle District of Florida,” he wrote.
“In that time, I was also designated as Senior Litigation Counsel and Anti-Terrorism Advisory Council Coordinator for the Department. My work as a prosecutor included years investigating national security matters and white collar/economic crimes. I have tried numerous cases at the federal level, including multi-week trials, and I am familiar with virtually all aspects of criminal investigation and prosecution.”
Since May 2023, Scruggs worked as a lawyer in private practice for the Atlanta, Georgia, firm of Barnes & Thornburg LLP doing white collar and investigations work. He no longer works there, Fox13 reported.
From 2009 to 2012, he was an assistant district attorney for the Manhattan District Attorneys office, working in a prescription drugs investigative unit, his LinkedIn page says.
3. Patrick Douglas Scruggs Helped Prosecute the Man Accused of Stealing Nancy Pelosi’s Office Lectern on January 6, 2021
Adam Johnson of Parrish, Florida has been identified as the man caught in a viral photo stealing a lectern from the U.S. House during Wednesday’s violent mob attack on the Capitol. Why hasn’t he been arrested?
According to the Tampa Bay Times, Scruggs appeared “on behalf of the federal government during hearings for Florida residents” who were accused of participating in the January 6, 2021, riots at the U.S. Capitol.
Scruggs helped prosecute Adam Johnson, the man “who stole the lectern from Nancy Pelosi’s office” on January 6, according to Fox13 News.
Newsweek reported that Scruggs received lower bail – $65,000 – than some of the Capitol rioters, and he posted it the same day. Some Capitol rioters were held without bail, Newsweek reported.
4. Patrick Douglas Scruggs Has Only Minor Traffic Cases on His Record
MugshotPatrick Douglas Scruggs
Florida court records show Scruggs has two minor traffic cases in the Tampa area.
He also has two minor traffic tickets out of Pinellas County, for speeding and “overtaking on the right,” according to court records.
5. Patrick Scruggs Graduated From Boston College & Studied International Politics at Georgetown University
Facebook (Tara Iglinski)Tara Iglinski’s photo
Scruggs got his law degree from Boston College, according to his LinkedIn page.
Before that, received a degree from the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in International Politics.
Under “Activities and societies,” he listed, “W. Coleman Nevils Medal. Alpha Phi Omega – Mu Alpha.”
Under skills, he listed, “International Public Affairs · Diplomacy · International Relations.”
He graduated from Regis High School, the LinkedIn page says.
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