Homeless man arrested after woman allegedly found him in her apartment

Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Karim Hadi Paxton, 56, was arrested yesterday afternoon after a woman returning to her apartment found the door locked from the inside. After she yelled for anybody inside to come out, Paxton reportedly came out of her apartment.

The victim told the responding Gainesville Police Department officer that when returned to her apartment yesterday afternoon, she found the door locked from inside and yelled into the apartment for anyone inside to come out. She told the officer that a voice answered from within the apartment and then Paxton came out of her apartment. She said she does not know Paxton and did not give him permission to be in her apartment. The location of the incident is unavailable.

Two men were in a car nearby and told the officer that the victim waved them down and told them someone was inside her apartment. They said that they saw Paxton walk out of the apartment and sit on the ground and that Paxton handed one of them his driver’s license and said he would wait for the police to arrive.

When the officer arrived, he went into the apartment with the victim, where she reportedly noticed that some of her belongings had been moved around and that several food items had been cooked and eaten. She also reported that some items inside the apartment did not belong to her.

Post Miranda, Paxton reportedly said that he had broken a window at about midnight to enter the apartment and that he ate and drank some items while inside. He said he broke into the apartment because he was homeless and needed somewhere to live.

A search incident to arrest reportedly produced about 3 grams of marijuana and two glass pipes in his pockets.

Paxton was previously arrested in January for breaking the window of an unoccupied apartment and entering it. The burglary charge was reduced to trespassing, and he entered a plea of nolo contendere to misdemeanor charges of trespassing and property damage. In March, he was sentenced to 47 days in jail with credit for 47 days served.

Paxton has been charged with burglary of an unoccupied structure, theft, property damage, and possession of less than 20 grams of marijuana. He has two misdemeanor convictions (the two described just above) and unspecified out-of-state convictions. Judge Susan Miller-Jones set bail at $131,000.

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.