Man arrested for attempting to steal bicycle from passerby on Newberry Road

Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Joseph Colin Barnes, 24, was arrested yesterday after allegedly trying to snatch a bicycle from a man walking past him on Newberry Road near NW 43rd Street and telling the victim he had a gun.

At about 1:30 p.m. on January 24, a Gainesville Police Department officer responded to a report of an attempted bike theft near the intersection of W. Newberry Road and NW 43rd Street. The victim said he was pushing his bicycle past a man when the man grabbed his bicycle and tried to snatch it from him while saying, “Give me your bike.” The victim said that when he refused, the man said, “Give me your bike, I have a gun.” The victim said he was in fear for his life, rode away from the man, and called 911.

The man was later identified as Barnes and arrested about an hour later in the same area; no gun was located. Post Miranda, Barnes declined to answer any questions.

Barnes has been charged with attempted armed robbery. His listed address is in West Palm Beach, and he has no criminal history in Alachua County. He was convicted of domestic battery in March 2023 in Brevard County and ordered to find an alternate residence; he successfully completed 12 months of probation in March 2024. Judge James Colaw set bail at $25,000.

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. 

  • All the crap from around the state and the nation comes to Gainesville where they know justice is non-existent and they don’t have to work for a living and can sponge off the people who actually DO work for a living. The welcome mat has been provided by the Eighth Judicial District, GRACE Marketplace and other so-called non-profits and the Gainesville City Commission.

  • Attempted armed robbery with no firearm?

    As others have noted, a judge in Brevard County ordered him to find another residence – and of all the counties between here and there he decided Gainesville’s lights were shining the brightest.
    Or is it the stupid hats are the highest?

    Gainesville voters, not the brightest.

  • I am starting to notice a rash of strong arm robberies of people’s bikes. I wonder if the city of Gainesville and Rodney Long and do another play just like the one they did on MLK day about gun violence “who’s in the box” for some reason it didn’t stop all the crime in the GSSR. maybe they need to do another play called “Gimme that bike sucker or else”

  • Poe started the Sanctuary City. The Crimes and the 2 billion Gainesville debt is his legacy. Now he is in charge of an immigrant farm ?

    • Hopefully Trump will turn on the NO VACANCY sign and Lauren Poe will finally have to start working for a living again instead of being a refugee broker/pimp.

  • Another non-local migrant attracted to our Fair community … and won’t talk without a lawyer…
    ACLUSPLCDNC 💩👺🤡👹👿

  • Two bike thefts in two days. Ordinary citizens are victimized. There is only one solution.

    Both bike thefts were in the future Springs County. Proponents of the conservative utopia of Springs County, get off your lazy butts and SECEDE.

    Secede and show us how you will run a county with MAGA principles and help from the moldy corpse of Brother John Birch to stop and prevent such blatant bike theft in your conservative utopia. You CLAIM you can do it.

    Law and order, or are you all just hot air?

    • While I like the idea of Springs County the only problem I see is where they want to but their eastern boundary which is 34th St. both these recent bike thefts took place at 43rd st and 55th st which is why I say Springs county doesn’t need to go that far east they might to redrawn those county lines and move the eastern boundary over to at least 122nd St (parker rd) or just to be a 100% sure fewer commies and felons from the GSSR sneak in I say 175th st. there’s a lot of new “multifamily bldgs” around 122nd otherwise called apartments sure they look nice and shiny now but so did Majestic Oaks whenever that was 1st built is all I am saying. Look its like there’s 2 korea’s and there’s a DMZ in-between. just like the GSSR keep anything from 34th St to 175th St and that will be like a DMZ for Springs County from the GSSR. hopefully the hobos, commies and felons won’t migrate to far west. If they do it maybe time to just abandon the GSSR and move to one of the 8 free counties (Clay, Bradford, Union, Putnam, Levy, Marion, Columbia, Gilchrist) that border the GSSR and let it collapse from within.

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