‘I was being attacked’: Stranger beats man with bat at Nashville gas station

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) - After a man accused of a string of violent attacks in Nashville was arrested this week, one of his alleged victims is now sharing the details of his horrifying attack.

Eder Rios told WSMV4 he was attacked with a wooden bat at a gas station on Dickerson Pike while working to repair equipment at a gas pump.

“To be honest, I didn’t realize what was happening,” Rios said. “I just wanted to get as far away from there.”

Rios said as he and others worked to fix the pump, someone pulled up next to them, waited until he turned his back and began swinging the baseball bat.

“I was being attacked,” Rios said. “I just felt a few punches in my head. I turned around and tried to protect myself with my arms, and I was hit four more times in my arm.”

In surveillance video, Rios is seen running away from the man, who jumped back into his car and sped off.

“I didn’t realize what was happening. That’s why I was just trying to avoid more hits by walking away,” Rios said. “Then, I realized that I was bleeding in my head and that my arm was hurt very bad.”

Rios said the gas station owner called 911 and filed a report while his friends rushed him to a nearby hospital.

“My hand that I use to work is broken,” he said. “I went the hospital that day, and now I have to go to a therapist.”

The Metropolitan Nashville Police Department said the stranger that hurt Rios also attacked two others a few days before and one day after the gas station assault. MNPD said 30-year-old Khadree Renfro is the alleged attacker and is charged with three counts of attempted homicide.

“To be honest, I’m a little scared that this happened to me,” Rios said. “I don’t know how it’s going to be when I come back to work.”

While Rios heals from his injuries, he still doesn’t know why he was attacked.

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