Career offender arrested for burglarizing vehicle in Golfview neighborhood

Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Jerome Jamal Jones, 43, has been arrested for allegedly burglarizing a vehicle in the carport of a home in the Golfview neighborhood.

At about 4:30 a.m. on June 22, a resident of the home saw someone rummaging through a vehicle in her attached carport and confronted him; the man reportedly yelled back at her before fleeing. She provided a description of the man and his clothing to the responding Gainesville Police Department officer.

While the officer was speaking with the victim, another officer conducted a traffic stop on Jones for riding a bicycle with no lights on Village Drive. Jones reportedly said travels along Newberry Road from his residence in Northridge (off NW 83rd Street) to his job on Main Street; when the officer asked why he was on a campus road, he reportedly could not provide a clear answer. His clothing reportedly matched the description provided by the victim, and he was reportedly carrying a face mask and gloves.

The victim positively identified Jones by appearance and voice as the man she’d seen in her carport.

Jones has been charged with burglary of an occupied dwelling and burglary of an unoccupied vehicle. He has seven felony convictions (seven violent) and two misdemeanor convictions (one violent) and has served two state prison sentences, with his most recent release in 2011; he is a designated Career Offender. Judge Meshon Rawls ordered him held without bail pending a hearing on a motion from the State Attorney’s Office to hold him without bail until trial; if the judge denies the motion, bail will be set at that hearing.

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.