A registered sex offender from Dunnellon reportedly started punching himself in the face after a woman called 911 to report that he battered her during a violent altercation.
The victim told a Marion County sheriff’s deputy that Raymond Christopher Robertson, 38, of SW Raintree Street, told her, “If I’m going to jail, then so are you,” as he punched himself. Robertson was arrested Wednesday and charged with felony battery (second or subsequent offense) in connection with the incident, which happened Aug. 24 at his home in Rainbow Lakes Estates.
The victim said the incident started when Robertson asked her to move her vehicle out of the way of his van so he could go to the store. She said as she was moving it, Robertson became aggressive with her, so she went inside immediately after moving it and went into the bathroom, according to the sheriff’s office report.
The victim said she was using the bathroom when Robertson burst through the door and began yelling at her. She said he grabbed her by her hair and began punching her on the right side of her head and face, as well as her chest. The victim said Robertson stopped hitting her when she told him an eyewitness was watching the entire time, the report said.
The victim told said she called 911 and told Robertson she was doing so, and he then took her phone and checked her call history to see if she was lying. When he realized she was telling the truth, he started punching himself so he could claim he was also assaulted. The deputy observed a slight red mark on the victim’s chest, according to the report.
The witness said she saw Robertson grab the victim’s hair and punch her on the head and chest. The witness said after Robertson was done hitting the victim, he asked the witness to come with him, but she refused because she was scared of him, the report said.
Contacted by phone, Robertson agreed to meet the deputy at a gas station, saying he was going to have a friend come with him to take his van because he knew he was most likely going to jail. Robertson said he was right in the city of Dunnellon so it wouldn’t take him long to get there, but the deputy waited more than an hour and Robertson never showed up, according to the report.
A warrant was issued for Robertson’s arrest and he was picked up on Wednesday.
Robertson is required to register as a sex offender after adjudication was withheld on a charge of sexual battery on a victim 12 years or older in Broward County in 2000. He’s been jailed twice for failing to report a change of address (2006) and failing to re-register as a sex offender (2013), according to the FDLE sex offender website. Marion County Jail records show Robertson was arrested for simple battery in 2010, domestic battery in January 2018, and for violating probation in September 2018.
Robertson is being held in the Marion County Jail on $2,500 bond. He’s scheduled to appear in Marion County Court on Oct. 1.