17-year-old on probation charged as adult in December car burglaries in Belmont neighborhood

Staff report

NEWBERRY, Fla. – Roman Romel Sheppard, 17, has been charged as an adult for burglarizing multiple vehicles in the Belmont neighborhood with his 16-year-old brother in the early morning hours of December 19.

At about 3:30 a.m. on December 19, a resident of the Belmont neighborhood reported that he had surveillance video showing two black males pulling door handles on multiple vehicles, including his vehicle.

A second resident reported that he had surveillance video of two people trying to break into his vehicle at about 3:35 a.m. The video reportedly shows the two subjects pulling on the door handles of that resident’s vehicle, then walking to the next door neighbor’s house and pulling on the door handles of the neighbor’s vehicle.

An Alachua County Sheriff’s Deputy who was canvassing the neighborhood in response to the calls saw someone sitting inside a car, dressed all in black, with a black mask covering his face. When the deputy got out of his car, the suspect, later identified as Roman Sheppard, fled on foot and was detained after a brief foot pursuit. The deputy reportedly found an empty handgun holster in Sheppard’s waistband and found a Glock .40 handgun along Sheppard’s flight path.

Roman Sheppard’s 16-year-old brother allegedly fled in a car that had recently been reported stolen near Tower Road; when a deputy followed him in a patrol car, he reportedly made a U-turn to try to evade the deputy and hit the deputy’s patrol car. He then allegedly ran from the car and was located on foot a few hours later on NW 143rd Street. Post Miranda, he reportedly admitted driving the stolen vehicle and knowing that it was stolen.

Post Miranda, Roman Sheppard admitted that he had been walking around with the intent to commit burglaries, that he had the handgun before seeing the deputy, and that the gun had been stolen from another vehicle that night. He has been charged with two counts of attempted burglary of an unoccupied conveyance, one count of burglary of an unoccupied conveyance, and resisting an officer without violence. Roman Sheppard is currently on juvenile probation for burglary of an unoccupied structure or vehicle and has a curfew of 7 p.m. to 7 a.m.

Judge Thomas Jaworski set bail at $210,000.

Articles about arrests are based on reports from law enforcement agencies. The charges listed are taken from the arrest report and/or court records and are only accusations. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.