Orange Park handyman arrested for watching woman through her backyard windows near UF campus

Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Johnnie Thomas Raben III, 49, of Orange Park, was arrested early Sunday morning after allegedly entering the secluded back yard of a residence near the UF campus and watching a resident through the windows.

At about 11:18 p.m. on August 15, the two victims were in their residence in the neighborhood across University Avenue from the O’Connell Center when the first victim got out of the shower and saw a notification on her phone that her security cameras had detected someone in her back yard. The responding Gainesville Police Department officer noted that the back yard of the residence is not accessible from a public roadway; a pedestrian must take a trail from the side of the residence to enter the fenced back yard.

The video reportedly showed a white man wearing a baggy shirt with a “Cloister” font on the front, shorts, tennis shoes, and black socks. The video shows the man pacing back and forth for two or three minutes, arousing himself by rubbing his genitals; he can be seen looking toward the first victim’s bedroom and bathroom windows during the time she was showering.

The officer found Raben in the 2000 block of NW 3rd Avenue, with clothes matching the man in the video except that he was not wearing a shirt; when Raben saw the officer, he reportedly put on a baggy shirt with a “Cloister” font on the front.

Post Miranda, Raben reportedly said at first that he was exercising in the area. He said he lives an hour and a half away in Orange Park, and he had three beers at a bar that evening before parking his vehicle near the victim’s home to “sweat out the alcohol.” The vehicle was later found in the 1400 block of NW 5th Avenue, about a 20-minute walk away.

Raben reportedly admitted to publicly urinating, but he said he was only a few feet from the roadway and had not entered anyone’s property. The officer noted that this violated a City ordinance for disorderly conduct, and a witness is not required to establish an act of indecent exposure under that ordinance.

Both victims reportedly identified Raben as the man they had seen on their security video.

Raben later told the officer he is a handyman who normally stays at a motel near the intersection of Tower Road and Newberry Road, but he did not rent a room for Saturday night. The officer noted that Raben did not have any reason to be in the victim’s area, and Raben does not know anyone in that area. After he was shown the video, Raben reportedly admitted to crossing through the woods into the victims’ back yard.

Raben has been charged with burglary of an occupied dwelling (for entering the curtilage of the victim’s residence), voyeurism, and violation of a City ordinance for disorderly conduct. He has fifteen felony convictions (one violent) and six misdemeanor convictions (non-violent), including two previous convictions for indecent exposure. He has served two state prison sentences, with his most recent release in 2019. Judge Gloria Walker set bail at $110,000.

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.