Woman on pre-trial release connected with car sought in fatal hit-and-run

Staff report

Updated at 11:45 p.m. with bail information

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Jaileen Damaris Pagan, 26, was arrested yesterday for petit theft. The arrest report alleges that she stole items from the Walmart at Butler Plaza, then drove away in a light green Hyundai with tag number Y490VQ, the same car sought in a hit-and-run fatality in Butler Plaza on the same date.

Pagan’s arrest report alleges that she and a co-defendant entered Walmart at about 2:45 p.m. on September 15, then Pagan put seven items with a value of $33.32 in her backpack and walked out without paying. The co-defendant allegedly put 17 cans of baked beans in her cart and then paid for 10 of them via self-checkout. A Loss Prevention Officer confronted the two women and told them to stop, but Pagan reportedly “ignored the witness and hurried to her vehicle.” The co-defendant allegedly said she paid for the baked beans, but when the employee said she didn’t pay for all of them, she said, “Oh, well, too bad,” with a smirk.

The Loss Prevention Officer reported that Pagan got into the driver’s seat of the Hyundai, and the co-defendant got into the passenger seat, and then they drove away.

Pagan was arrested on June 16 after allegedly shooting at two people; Judge Walter Green set bail at $22,000 ($5,000 for each charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, $10,000 for possession of a controlled substance, and $2,000 for battery), and she was released on bail. The next day, she was re-arrested for allegedly violating her pre-trial release conditions by tagging the victim on Facebook, Judge Mark Moseley set bail at $5,000, and she was again released on bail.

On July 12, prosecutors requested that her bond be revoked because she had continued to try to contact the victim, and formal charges of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, shooting from a vehicle, drug possession, and battery were filed on July 13. Her bond was revoked on July 14, and a warrant for her arrest was issued on July 27. Another warrant for her arrest was issued on September 6 after she failed to appear at hearings in her two pending cases.

A sworn complaint was filed against Pagan on September 7, alleging that she held a gun to a victim’s head on September 4. A second sworn complaint was filed on the same date, alleging that Pagan continued to stalk the victim in the shooting case.

Judge Thomas Jaworski ordered Pagan held without bail on the original charges and set bail at $2,000 for failing to appear and $5,000 for the petit theft charge.

In response to our question about whether Pagan is the suspect in the September 15 hit-and-run fatality, Gainesville Police Department responded, “It is an open investigation and we are not releasing any information.”

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.