A 24-year-old Eustis man had to be tased to keep him from going after a mouthy neighbor while being arrested for his role in a drunken fight in Ocala on Monday night.
Jessie Asa Frankito was charged with battery (second or subsequent offense) and resisting an officer without violence after the incident, which happened around 8:30 p.m. at a residence on SW 144th Street. Frankito’s criminal record includes several prior charges for battery and a conviction in 2016.
The Marion County sheriff’s deputy who responded to the incident found Frankito being restrained by his brother, who broke up the fight between Frankito and the victim. Frankito’s brother had blood running down his neck and cheek, which he said came from being struck while stopping the fight. He said he didn’t know who started the altercation, only that he tried to break it up, according to the sheriff’s office report.
While the deputy was trying to interview Frankito’s brother, Frankito had to be ordered several times to remain by the side of the house. Frankito became very verbal with the deputy and threatened several times to strike the neighbor who was hollering from across the street. Frankito was told several times to ignore the neighbor and remain seated by the car, but at one point he got up from the ground near the vehicle and started walking towards the neighbor in an aggressive manner. Another deputy used his electronic disabling device to subdue Frankito and get him into handcuffs, the report said.
Frankito, who had an odor of alcohol on his breath and was being very aggressive, had a large red mark in his back and said there was nothing physical going on and he didn’t strike anyone. The victim was extremely intoxicated with bloodshot, glassy eyes and a strong odor of alcohol on his breath. The victim said through slurred speech that there was no altercation and there was nothing going on. He had blood on his chin and was very uncooperative with the deputy, according to the report.
The victim’s juvenile son said Frankito was the one who started the fight. He said Frankito had been acting aggressively all night and was trying to fight everyone, the report said.
Based on all of the statements and the totality of the circumstances, the deputy determined Frankito was the primary aggressor and placed him under arrest. Frankito is being held in the Marion County Jail on $3,000 bond and will appear in Marion County Jail on March 24.