A man who was found guilty Thursday of bringing a gun to the Broward County courthouse and threatening to kill himself caused another bizarre scene in the courthouse when he drank liquid he said was poison out of a bottle and collapsed after the verdict was read. Marin Stroia, 60, was found guilty of armed trespass and reckless display of…
Broward Sheriff’s Office deputies said they arrested the 60-year-old man who collapsed in a courtroom Thursday after he said he drank poison, but actually drank water.
A jury announced Marin Stroia’s quilty verdict for a prior case when Stroia took out an aspirin bottle and drank a clear liquid from it, police said.
As Stroia was being escorted to have his fingerprints taken, he collapsed and had to be taken from the Fort Lauderdale courtroom on a stretcher by paramedics.
Stroia was medically cleared by a hospital and is currently in custody at BSO’s main jail, according to deputies.
The incident came a year and a month after an armed Stroia barged into the courthouse through an exit door and threatened to kill himself.
Distraught over his divorce proceedings, Stroia sat down in the courthouse lobby and pointed the gun at his chest on Jan. 14, 2011, police said.
Stroia had to be talked out of shooting himself by retired Judge Joel Lazarus, who spoke with Stroia for 15 minutes before he was taken into custody.
Lazarus later said Stroia just "needed to vent" and wanted someone to listen to his problems.
