Man accused of gouging out uncle's eyes

JOLIET TOWNSHIP, Ill., Jan. 4 (UPI) -- A 32-year-old Illinois man was being held on $1 million bond after allegedly gouging out his uncle's eyes during a fight over a TV remote control.

Exulam I. Holman, 32, was charged with aggravated domestic battery after his arrest Saturday, The (Joliet) Herald-News reported.

Will County Sheriff's officers were called just after 10 p.m. to a house in Joliet Township, about 40 miles southwest of Chicago, where a 62-year-old man reported he had been attacked.

A deputy found the victim, whose name was not released, at the bottom of the basement stairs with blood coming from his eyeballs, both swollen, dislocated and protruding about a quarter-inch from the sockets, police said.

The man told police he and his nephew, both of whom live at the house, had been arguing over the remote control, which Holman broke.

Police said Holman, who is 5-foot-7 and weighs 280 pounds, pushed his 140-pound uncle to the floor and straddled him. The victim said Holman inserted his thumbs into his eyes "and attempted to pry the eyeballs out of the sockets," then allegedly pushed him down the basement stairs.

The victim was taken to Silver Cross Hospital and later transferred to the University of Illinois at Chicago Hospital for more advanced care.

The Herald-News said sources said he is blind in his left eye and needs more surgery to have limited vision in his right eye.

Police say Holman has been arrested 25 times since 1999, the Herald-News said.