Two arrested for stealing e-bikes or scooters on campus

Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Alexander Lewis Holt, 30, of Hawthorne, and Myair Williams, 19, were arrested yesterday for separate incidents of stealing e-bikes or scooters on campus.

On February 14, a University of Florida Police Department officer responded to a report of a stolen electric scooter that had been parked in front of the Heavener Football Facility at about 7:35 p.m. When the victim left the facility at 10 p.m., he discovered that the scooter, valued at $340, was missing.

The officer reviewed surveillance video and saw that the suspect was a white male with blonde hair and facial hair, wearing black shoes, black pants, a neon green shirt, and glasses.

At about 8:30 a.m. on February 15, the same officer was dispatched to Ben Hill Griffin Stadium to investigate a report of a suspicious person and made contact with Holt.

Another officer had seen Holt riding an e-bike in the parking lot of the O’Connell Center and recognized him from a bulletin that was issued after the previous day’s scooter theft. When the officer tried to stop Holt, Holt allegedly rode in the opposite direction, traveling eastbound through Garage 7 toward Gate 3 of Ben Hill Griffin Stadium and jumping multiple curbs to elude officers before he as detained.

The arresting officer reported that after he was stopped, Holt spontaneously said he had just taken the e-bike from a fraternity house and added, “When you’re wrong, you’re wrong.” The e-bike was registered with UFPD, and an officer tracked down the owner and verified that it had been stolen.

At about 12:20 p.m. on February 15, the same UFPD officer who arrested Holt responded to Beaty Hall East, where a resident had reported that his e-bike, valued at $2,000, was stolen overnight. The victim had placed an Apple AirTag on the bike, and the AirTag showed that the bike was in the 1500 block of SE 12th Avenue.

The officer drove toward that address and saw a man, later identified as Myair Williams, riding an e-bike that matched the description of the victim’s e-bike. The officer reported that he saw Williams run a stop sign, and he conducted a traffic stop in the 1100 block of SE 13th Avenue. A UFPD dispatcher confirmed that the AirTag was on the move in the area of the traffic stop.

Post Miranda, Williams reportedly said he had bought the e-bike from “the orange and blue store” for $80 on February 14. He reportedly admitted that he knew at the time of the purchase that the bike was worth much more than that.

The officer reported that the UF decal had been scratched off the bike, and a box that had been attached to the bike was missing.

Holt, who was described as homeless in a previous sworn complaint, has been charged with two counts of petit theft. He has juvenile convictions between 2007 and 2012, one adult felony conviction (non-violent), and one misdemeanor conviction (violent). He is also facing a sworn complaint for a burglary at Beaty Towers in July 2024 in which he arrived on foot and left on a bicycle. Judge Denise Ferrero set bail at $4,000.

Williams has been charged with grand theft. He has a juvenile conviction from 2017, an adult felony conviction (non-violent), and two adult misdemeanor convictions (non-violent).

Williams was arrested in January 2024 and charged with sexual battery and burglary after a female victim who is disabled said he had raped her and stolen her iPhone; he entered a plea of nolo contendere to petit theft in that case, along with a separate charge of petit theft for fraudulently returning items at Walmart, and was sentenced to one year of probation. He was on probation when he was arrested in August 2024 for burglary and stealing an e-bike; after pleading to burglary, he was sentenced to two years of probation in October 2024, with adjudication of guilt withheld.

Judge Ferrero set bail at $5,000 on the new charge.

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.