A registered sex offender from Ocala was arrested Christmas night after he allegedly struck a girl multiple times with a knife handle and threatened the rest of her family with the weapon because he couldn’t borrow their car.
Ramiro Sevilla Jr., 38, of 1904 NE 50th Place, was charged with four counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon without intent to kill, aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, simple battery, and violating his probation for failing to register as a sex offender. Sevilla was arrested twice in 2016 and twice in 2018 for sex offender registration violations. He was convicted in 2001 in Broward County for lewd and lascivious battery on a victim 12 to 15 years old.
In the latest incident, Marion County sheriff’s deputies responded to a domestic disturbance with a man, later identified as Sevilla, causing a disturbance and preventing medics from treating a victim. There were numerous calls about the same disturbance that said Sevilla had a gun and shots were possibly fired, according to the sheriff’s office report.
The victim, who was being taken to the hospital, didn’t want to discuss the incident. Contacted later by phone, she still didn’t want to speak but said she fell on the ground. The victim wouldn’t say whether she was pushed or not, the report said.
The victim’s juvenile daughter, who was also a victim, said Sevilla came to the house to borrow a vehicle. She said Sevilla became upset because her mother had already agreed to let her use the car. She said Sevilla grabbed a long kitchen knife with a curved blade and went outside and slashed the tire on her mother’s car, according to the report.
The juvenile victim said Sevilla came back inside and started waving the knife around her and two other juvenile victims. She said he made statements about how he was going to kill all of them. She said her mother then walked into the back bedroom and Sevilla started following her, the report said.
The juvenile victim said she saw Sevilla push her mother down to the ground. She said she then got onto the ground to hold her mother. She said Sevilla then started hitting her on the head with the handled end of the knife, according to the report.
Both of the other juvenile victims said Sevilla was upset because all of the juveniles already had plans to use the car. They said Sevilla said they weren’t going anywhere, and he grabbed the knife and went outside and slashed the car tire. They said he also slashed the tires on all the bikes in the front yard before coming inside and pointing the knife at everyone. One of the girls said she saw her mom and sister on the ground with Sevilla hitting her sister on the head multiple times with the knife, the report said.
A neighbor from across the street said she saw Marion County Fire Rescue was on the scene, so she walked outside. She said she saw the medics leave the scene and then could year yelling. The witness said she saw Sevilla lunge towards one of the victims before going out of sight. She said she heard one of the juveniles yell, “you need to leave or he’s going to kill you,” according to the report.
A deputy observed the car’s front passenger-side tire had a think cut on the sidewall that was consistent with it being slashed with a knife. The deputy also observed three bikes in the front yard also had slashed tires. The deputy located the knife in a kitchen cabinet and it matched the description given by the victims, the report said.
After being read his Miranda warning, Sevilla said he went to the residence because he needed medical attention and wanted to borrow the vehicle. He said the victim had a knife because she was going cut herself and that he took the knife away. Sevilla said that was the only time he had a knife, according to the report.
Sevilla said the car had a flat tire from a nail. When told there was a clear knife puncture on the side of the tire, Sevilla said he didn’t have any knowledge of it. When asked why he would go there to borrow a car knowing it had a flat tire, Sevilla didn’t respond, the report said.
Sevilla is being held without bond in the Marion County Jail. He’s due to appear in Marion County Court on Jan. 28.