An Ocala man was arrested Thursday after a domestic altercation with a pregnant woman who was video recording him with her cell phone.
A Marion County sheriff’s deputy responded to the victim’s workplace in Summerfield, where she said Jeffrey Norfleet, 31, confronted her after she moved out of their residence on Bahia Trak in Ocala. The victim told the deputy that Norfleet sent her a text message telling her he was coming to talk. She said she told him not to show up, but he did anyway.
According to the sheriff’s office report, the victim said Norfleet started arguing with her in front of the building. She said he tried to enter the employee entrance but she shut the door. A few minutes later, a co-worker told the victim that Norfleet was behind the building next to her vehicle. The victim said she went outside and began video recording Norfleet because she believed he would damage her car, a sheriff’s office report states.
The victim said Norfleet asked why she was recording him and tried to grab the phone from her. She said he then snatched the hat off her head, causing her head to jerk forward and ripping out some of her hair. The victim showed the deputy her hat, which had several hairs attached to the back strap.
The victim said after Norfleet took her hat, she began walking back towards her workplace. She said Norfleet got in his vehicle and drove to where she was and tried to grab her through the window, but she pulled away.
At that point, the victim said, Norfleet got out of his vehicle, approached her, and tried to take the phone from her. She said she turned away from him and put the phone near her chest to keep him from taking it. She said Norfleet then reached around her waist with both hands – one on each side – while trying again to grab the phone, the report says.
The victim said Norfleet made physical contact with her against her will during the altercation, and that he is aware she is pregnant. She showed the deputy the video she recorded on her phone, which supported her account of the incident.
Questioned by the deputy at his residence, Norfleet admitted that he snatched the victim’s hat off her head and that he grabbed her while trying to take her phone away because she was recording him.
Norfleet was charged with aggravated battery of a pregnant victim and taken to the Marion County Jail. He was released Saturday on $500 bond and will appear in Marion County Court on April 23.