Man in pre-trial diversion agreement arrested after fleeing through Hunters Crossing parking lot, taking motorcycle into McDonald’s kitchen

Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Jamari Jakwon Kinsler, 20, was arrested yesterday afternoon after allegedly fleeing at high speed on a motorcycle, including driving the wrong way on NW 43rd Street; he allegedly rode around the Hunters Crossing parking lot multiple times before taking the motorcycle into the kitchen and back room of McDonald’s.

At about 3:25 p.m. on April 21, a Florida Highway Patrol Trooper saw a red motorcycle “catwalking” (popping a wheelie and riding on the rear wheel) on NW 39th Avenue near NW 34th Street. The trooper turned on his lights, and the motorcyclist reportedly continued westbound on NW 39th Avenue, looked back at the trooper, and turned north onto NW 43rd Street.

The trooper turned on his siren and reported that the motorcyclist looked back at him a few times before accelerating rapidly, passing a vehicle in the bike lane, and then crossing all the lanes and traveling northbound in the southbound lanes and bike lane of NW 43rd Street.

The motorcyclist reportedly entered the parking lot of McDonald’s and drove around the building twice before driving through the Publix parking lot, cutting in between parked cars, with multiple pedestrians and vehicles present. The motorcyclist reportedly drove back to McDonald’s, where a citizen told the trooper he went around that building and took the motorcycle inside the restaurant.

The trooper entered the lobby of the restaurant and saw the employee door open; an employee said the man was in the back. The trooper reportedly found Kinsler walking toward him from the back of the store; Kinsler allegedly resisted being placed in handcuffs.

The motorcycle was reportedly found inside McDonald’s, in the back of the store. A witness said the motorcyclist had gone in the side door, so the trooper reported that Kinsler must have taken the motorcycle “all the way through the kitchen to the back of the store, as there is no other way for it to have gotten there.”

Responding Gainesville Police Department officers reportedly said they are familiar with Kinsler because he has a history of “doing the same things on a motorcycle and fleeing, as well as fleeing on foot.”

The motorcycle was not registered for operation on the roadway, and Kinsler does not have a motorcycle endorsement, and several citations were issued.

Kinsler has been charged with fleeing at high speed with disregard for the safety of others, attempting to hide evidence, resisting an officer without violence, operating a vehicle with no registration, operating a motorcycle without an endorsement, and racing. He has juvenile convictions between 2017 and 2022, and he is in a pre-trial diversion agreement for running from an officer who pulled him over while he was riding a bicycle at night without a light; while he was on pre-trial release, he was arrested for battery, but Judge Susan Miller-Jones reinstated his pre-trial release conditions, and that case is no longer available to the public. The pre-trial diversion agreement states that the charge of resisting an officer will be dropped in August if he refrains from violating the law until that date.

Judge Kristine Van Vorst set bail at $230,000 on the new charges.

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.