Gainesville CNA charged with confining Tacachale resident in his room

Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Ma’chir Damarius Miller, 21, has been charged with false imprisonment for confining a Tacachale resident in his room.

The Medicaid Fraud Control Unit of the Florida Attorney General’s Office investigated a complaint from the Department of Children and Families, alleging that the victim, a Medicaid recipient residing at Tacachale Center, was illegally confined in a room by Miller.

On December 20, 2025, Miller was employed as a Residential Unit Specialist at Tacachale, but he was placed on administration leave on December 21 and resigned on December 23.

A nurse at Tacachale reportedly told investigators that she was handing out medication in the victim’s building when she heard a “banging” noise and found a gait belt tied from the doorknob of the victim’s bedroom to a handrail, preventing the victim from leaving his bedroom. When she asked who was responsible for placing the gait belt there, Miller reportedly said he was, and he removed it. However, the nurse said Miller refused to identify himself. The nurse also reported that the victim did not appear to be injured or in distress.

In an interview with a Tacachale investigator, Miller reportedly admitted to tying the gait belt to the door because he was concerned that the victim would interfere with the process of distributing medication; he said he sat with the victim for about 10 minutes after the incident to confirm he was not injured.

The training manager at Tacachale reportedly provided records showing that Miller had attended training on the facility’s policies, and she said that confining a resident to his room was not consistent with the training or authority of Miller.

State investigators attempted to contact Miller by phone, but he did not respond; they went to his listed address, where an elderly woman reportedly said nobody named Ma’chir Miller lived at that address and she did not know who he was. Investigators photographed the tags of several cars parked in the driveway at that address, and one of them was registered to Miller. The investigators went back to the same address on a different date, and a different woman answered the door and reportedly said Miller lived there but was not home.

A sworn complaint was filed on August 12, and a warrant for Miller’s arrest was issued the same day; he was arrested on August 18.

Miller has been charged with false imprisonment. He is on pre-trial release in Orange County for making a written threat to kill and aggravated assault with a firearm; he also has an active warrant for violating his release conditions in Orange County. Judge William Davis set bail at $100,000, but Miller’s attorney has filed a motion requesting his release on his own recognizance and stating that he is currently employed as a CNA. That hearing is scheduled for August 27.

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.