University Police recently released a detailed report of the March 3 stabbing of UF employee Clifford Preston near Leigh Hall.
At about 7 a.m., Michael Cravey, a 28-year-old Gainesville resident, approached Preston and asked him if he had a gun. Preston, who was with his wife, UF employee Beckie Preston, said no, according to the report.
Cravey walked away, but then he came back and said something about a man named Mike Potter. Preston said he didn’t know him. That’s when Cravey pulled a long folding knife out of his pocket and attacked Preston.
One witness said she thought it was a prank, according to the report.
The woman saw Cravey chasing Preston and told police she didn’t expect foul play at first. Cravey was laughing.
Then she saw him stab Preston.
Preston told police Cravey stabbed him several times near his neck and back, according to the report.
Preston was bleeding heavily from his right collarbone and neck.
Cravey ran and fled in a black Jeep, sparking a police chase through the city. Officers determined the chase was too dangerous to continue after Cravey began running red lights and driving the wrong direction on Newberry Road.
Cravey eventually crashed near Sonny’s Barbecue on Archer Road and ran from the site onto Butler Plaza.
Police tracked Cravey to the Best Buy parking lot. An officer fired multiple shots after Cravey charged at police with a hatchet, according to the report. He was taken to UF Health Shands Hospital and later pronounced dead.
Police notified the mother, Maureen Cravey, who said her son saw psychological counselors for problems with grief and anxiety. She denied knowledge that he suffered from serious psychological problems.
The night before the stabbing, she told police, her son got up several times because he couldn’t sleep. He then left the house at about 6:30 a.m., leaving a note that said he was going to drive around Gainesville.
[A version of this story ran on page 4 on 3/21/2014 under the headline "Newly released report shares details of March 3 stabbing"]
