An Ocala man trying to evict a woman from their house was arrested on a domestic battery charge Monday after he reportedly elbowed her and pushed her down during an incident in a laundry shed.
A Marion County sheriff’s deputy was called to a residence on SE 33rd Avenue, where the victim said Michael Costa, 33, was angry because he wanted her out of the house and she wouldn’t leave. She said Costa had taken her clothes and placed them outside in the rain.
The deputy told Costa he would have to go through the proper legal process to have her removed, a sheriff’s office report says.
The deputy was called back a short time later because the victim said Costa pushed her. Costa had already left the home before the deputy arrived.
The victim said after the deputy left, she and her daughter went to a shed to put her wet clothes in the dryer. Costa came out and told her she couldn’t use the dryer and started removing them. The victim told Costa she needed to dry them or else mildew would form on them.
Costa allegedly used the dryer door to push the victim away from the dryer, causing her to scrape her arm on something. Costa then went to the power box to shut it off. When the victim tried to stop him, he elbowed her away and caused her to fall, the report says.
The victim told her daughter to call 911. Costa started to leave and said he didn’t care if she called law enforcement, the report says.
Costa later called the sheriff’s office and said he was calling so he didn’t appear guilty for leaving, and that he already had dinner plans with his father. Costa admitted telling the victim he didn’t want her using the dryer. He denied pushing her but said they bumped into each other, the report says.
Costa was tracked down at his father’s house and arrested. He was taken to the Marion County Jail, where he was released Tuesday on $1,000 cash bond. He’ll answer the domestic battery charge in Marion County Court on April 9.