Man Blames Wife Beating on Gas Prices
OCALA, Fla. — A 77-year-old man told a deputy he roughed up his 74-year-old wife because he was upset about the high cost of gas for driving her to and from dialysis treatments, according to police. Authorities said Richard Close was charged with aggravated battery and battery on a person over 65.Close said that his life turned upside down when doctors in Illinois placed his wife on kidney dialysis.
Over the Christmas holidays, the retired mechanic said his wife of 26 years went to visit her family. During the visit, doctors placed her on dialysis.
Deputies went to the couple’s home Thursday night because of an altercation. Close’s wife told them that her husband had beaten her up, police said.
Close told police the couple’s gas bill has climbed from $60 a month to $140 a month.
It was not immediately known if he had an attorney.
