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ST. GEORGE — While in jail on an armed robbery case, a man nearly beat a Washington County inmate to death. He now will serve prison time for both cases.
On Feb. 20, Lazaro Ponce, 47, of Savannah, Georgia, appeared before District Judge Jay Winward to be sentenced on a second-degree aggravated assault.
The case was originally filed on Dec. 22, 2022, as a first-degree felony aggravated attempted murder after Ponce nearly beat an inmate to death at the Washington County Purgatory Correctional Facility.
At the time of the incident, jail command staff found the injured inmate unconscious and beaten to the point staff were "concerned that the victim was going to die," authorities said. The man was transported to St. George Regional Hospital in critical condition.
