Woman arrested for threatening 7-11 clerks with a gun

BY JENNIFER CABRERA

Melody Chrystal Simpson, 41, was arrested yesterday on charges of aggravated assault, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, and possession of drugs and drugs paraphernalia.

At about 11:00 p.m. on January 27, Simpson allegedly got into a verbal argument with two employees at the 7-11 at 4207 NW 13th Street, where she is a regular customer. After the employees asked her to leave the property, she replied, “What are you going to do, call the cops?” When the employees said they would, she allegedly pulled a pistol from her vehicle and said, “I’ll give you a reason to call the cops.” The employees reported that after they called 911, she drove away at a high rate of speed.

The responding Gainesville Police Department (GPD) officer reported that the incident was captured on cameras at the store and that the suspect had a unique face tattoo. He also reported having had personal interactions with Simpson in the past and recognizing her.

Yesterday evening, Simpson’s car was pulled over in a traffic stop because she has an active warrant for violation of probation on a grand theft conviction and for the sworn complaint from the 7-11 incident. She was searched after being detained, and the officer reported finding MDMA in Simpson’s pocket, along with two crack pipes and a Taser.

Post Miranda, Simpson reportedly admitted getting into an argument with the 7-11 employees and saying, “I’ll give you a reason to call the cops,” but when asked about the pistol, she reportedly said, “You just trying to pin this on me” and denied having a firearm.

Simpson is on a 36-month probation for stealing a $420 power tool from Ace Hardware in 2019. The arrest report in a 2020 sworn complaint–in which items were stolen from a car and then the credit cards used fraudulently–notes that “many GPD officers have become very familiar with [Simpson] over time.” In that case, she was sentenced to a 36-month probation concurrent with the probation in the first case and ordered to complete a residential substance abuse program. A warrant for her arrest was issued less than a month later (November 4, 2020), when she didn’t report to her probation officer and was found to have given an invalid address to both law enforcement and her defense lawyer. That warrant remained open until yesterday.

Simpson has been charged with two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon without intent to kill, possession of a controlled substance, possession of drug paraphernalia, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. She remains in the Alachua County Jail; the bail amount, if any, is currently unavailable.

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.