LAKE CITY, Fla. (WCJB) - Columbia County officials are investigating after a man was charged with fatally stabbing a homeowner who was renting a room to him.

Deputies responded to reports of a woman being stabbed multiple times at 144 SE Bunny Court in Lake City Friday night.

Witnesses say the suspect, Ernest Pearce, fled out the back door into the woods. They say Pearce, 43, had gotten into an argument with the homeowner and struck her, knocking her to the ground, before grabbing a knife from the kitchen and stabbing her multiple times.

While deputies searched the surrounding area for Pearce, several other law enforcement agencies responded to the scene and attempted life-saving measures on the victim, but were unsuccessful.

Pearce was located and taken to the Columbia County Detentio

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