‘Not all heroes wear capes.’ Key West man is stabbed while protecting co-worker
An office stabbing in Key West likely would have been much worse had it not been for a 65-year-old man putting himself in harm’s way to protect his colleague and getting stabbed in the back, witnesses and police say.
The Wednesday afternoon attack started with an estranged boyfriend coming to the office to harass the mother of his child about custody visits, even though he had to stay away due to a domestic violence court order against him, according to police.
He became enraged and started stabbing her, police said.
The woman’s co-worker jumped up from his desk and put himself between the woman and her attacker, getting stabbed twice before pushing the knife-wielding man outside, police and witnesses said.
“He put his life in danger to protect her,” Gary Burchfield, owner of Gary the Carpenter, said of his employee, Joe ‘Weed’ Clements.
“He didn’t even realize he was stabbed until he sat down in a chair and saw the blood on the ground,” Burchfield told the Miami Herald Thursday.
Both Clements, 65, and the victim, 36-year-old Nicole Albury, are longtime employees and friends of Burchfield, he said. The stabbing took place at Gary the Carpenter at 800 Simonton St. in Key West.
“Nicole, she’s like family,” Burchfield said.
After an overnight manhunt, police found the man suspected of stabbing both people. Kentrell Freeman, 31, was hiding in the backyard of the Poinciana Plaza Apartment Complex on Dunlap Drive, about three miles east of where the attack happened, said Key West Police Department spokeswoman Alyson Crean.
Restraining order against boyfriend
Police booked Freeman into jail on one count of attempted murder and a count of aggravated battery with a deadly weapon. A judge set his bond at $2.5 million.
In September, Albury got a judge’s restraining order against Freeman, which stipulated that he wasn’t allowed near her or her office.
Paramedics airlifted Albury to Jackson Memorial South and took Clements to Lower Keys Medical Center in Key West. Clements has been released, and Burchfield said Albury is recovering and could be released by Friday.
“Not all heroes wear capes. Some wear ugly pants. But this dude Joe Weed Clements is one today. And I’m proud to call him brother,” Burchfield wrote in a Facebook post, noting the funky dragon pants Lower Keys Medical Center staff gave Clements when he was released from the hospital.
According to Freeman’s arrest affidavit, a witness said Freeman came into the business to question Albury on why she was keeping their child away from him. The witness said Freeman has come to the business before, which was a violation of a domestic violence injunction, according to the report.
While Albury remained calm sitting behind her desk, the witness told police Freeman appeared agitated and was pacing back and forth in front of her.
Freeman picked up a cellphone on the desk and hit Albury in the head with it, the report states. He then pulled out a knife and started stabbing her in the abdomen, the witness told police.
Clements got up from his desk and stood in front of Albury with his back turned toward Freeman, the report states. He was stabbed in the center of his back between his shoulder blades and on his left flank, the blade nearly missing his kidney, according to the report.
Previous criminal charges
Freeman’s criminal history in the Keys dates back to 2012, and most recently includes pending charges of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and violating a domestic violence injunction stemming from an arrest in September, according to Monroe County court records.
Burchfield said the injunction violation also involved Freeman coming to the office, that time armed with a baseball bat. The person who prevented him from entering the building and locked the door was Clements, Burchfield said.
“His intent was to come in and do harm,” Burchfield said. “No doubt in my mind.”
This story was originally published May 29, 2025 at 8:49 AM with the headline "‘Not all heroes wear capes.’ Key West man is stabbed while protecting co-worker."
