Family accused of beating Pompano Beach gay man in 2021 appears in court
MIAMI - A family accused of brutally beating a gay man in his Pompano Beach home back in 2021 appeared in court Wednesday.
Inna and Yevhen Makarenko, and their son Oleh, are charged with hate crimes, attempted murder, battery, and kidnapping.
Wednesday's hearing focused on legal representation.
Oleh said his parents were approved for a public defender -- but he wasn't.
And because he can't afford a private attorney -- he wants to represent himself.
The accuser says the Makarenkos beat and blinded him over his alleged relationship with Oleh.
The family denies the accusations.
At the courthouse, Wednesday, Oleh accused the victim of lying.
The only thing that the state has is the victims' report, sworn testimony that mentioned both of my brothers being there and now it turns out they weren't, and the state is no longer prosecuting them.
So out of five members of the family, only three are left, so where are they going with this?
Oleh says he and the victim were friends -- but were not in a relationship.