Inset: Lemar Beasley (Putnam County Sheriff”s Office). Background: Dollar General in Crescent City, Florida (Google Maps).
The suspect, identified as Lemar Beasley, faces charges of first-degree murder following the tragic killing of 36-year-old Cheyenne Kastens. According to a statement released by the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office on their Facebook page, the heinous crime unfolded on a Friday afternoon in Crescent City.
Investigators report that both Beasley and Kastens were present at the Dollar General, yet they apparently did not interact inside the store and were strangers to one another. The attack occurred when Kastens was near her vehicle, and Beasley allegedly approached her with a knife, inflicting multiple stab wounds.
Emergency responders were quick to arrive, administering CPR until paramedics could transport Kastens to the hospital. Tragically, she was pronounced dead upon arrival. The incident prompted an immediate manhunt as Beasley fled the scene, eluding capture for nearly 24 hours. Authorities eventually located and arrested him at a camper situated on Huntington Shortcut Road, roughly seven miles from the crime scene.
In the course of their investigation, deputies recovered a knife believed to be the weapon used in the attack. Beasley’s criminal past is extensive, stretching over 30 years, and includes his status as a registered sex offender. Notably, he had been released from prison in July, having served time for not complying with sex offender registration requirements.
A knife that was possibly used in the attack was recovered. Beasley has an “extensive criminal history” dating back some three decades. He also is a registered sex offender and was just released from prison in July after serving for failing to register as a sex offender.
“Our prayers and deepest condolences are to the family and friends of Cheyenne Kastens,” Sheriff H.D. “Gator” DeLoach said in a statement. “While I cannot take away their pain and sorrow while grieving the loss of a loved one, my promise to her family and our south Putnam community is that we will do everything to make sure this refuse of human garbage spends the rest of his life confined in a cell away from society and dies in prison. There is no reason for someone to lose their life for just going about their day.”
Beasley is in the Putnam County Jail without bond.
