An Ocala man and Gainesville woman are behind bars on multiple charges after being caught hiding in an unoccupied residence and then intentionally driving into the homeowner’s car that was blocking their vehicle in the driveway.
William Donato Martinez and Amiyah N. Cannon, both 20, were each charged with two counts of criminal mischief with property damage of more than $1,000 damage and single counts of unarmed burglary of an unoccupied dwelling and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon without intent to kill. Martinez, who lives at 16804 SW 39th Circle, also faces a charge of grand theft auto.
The victim told a Marion County sheriff’s deputy that potential renters went to the residence, located at 14185 SW 28th Lane, on May 5 to look at it for possibly renting. The victim said he got a call from the one of the potential renters, who said they never went inside because as they were walking around the residence, they saw a back window broken, according to the sheriff’s office report.
The victim said the potential renters apparently spooked the people who were inside the residence. A deputy arrived at the home, but the victim didn’t want to pursue charges and a report wasn’t filed, the report said.
On May 6, the victim said he went to the incident location to check out the damage to the window. He said it was odd to see the master bedroom closet door closed. He said when he opened it, he saw two people – later identified as Martine and Cannon — lying on the floor inside the closet. The victim said he tried to keep them inside the closet by holding the door shut with his foot, but they broke the door and got out. He said he ran out of the bedroom and tried to lock the door, according to the report.
The victim said he ran out of the house and saw the garage door was now open. He saw Cannon in the front passenger seat and Martinez in the garage. The victim said Martinez screamed for him to move his silver 2012 Hyundai because Martinez’s black Kia Sorrento was trapped in the garage. The victim said he told Martinez he wouldn’t move his vehicle until police arrived, the report said.
The victim said Martinez drove the black Kia into the silver Hyundai, causing front-end damage to both vehicles. Martinez then backed into the back wall inside the garage, which also sustained damage, before driving forward again into the Hyundai, causing more damage to the vehicles and the sidewall inside the garage, according to the report.
The victim said Martinez and Cannon were finally able to drive out of the garage and went west on SW 28th Lane and then north onto SW 144th Court. He said he lost sight of the vehicle and drove back to the incident location to wait for law enforcement, the report said.
A deputy observed front-end damage to the Hyundai, as well as damage to the back wall inside the garage, the side wall inside the garage, a broken window on the northwest side of the residence and the closet door in the master bedroom. The victim estimated the damage at around $3,000, according to the report.
Using the vehicle’s tag number, a deputy tracked the Kia to Martinez’s mother’s house. She said the last time she saw Martinez was the previous morning, and that she gave him permission to use her vehicle, a black Kia Sorrento, the report said.
Deputies put together a photo lineup that contained Martinez, who the victim picked out of the lineup. He said Martinez was the person he saw in the residence and driving the Kia. A short time later, deputies identified the Kia and stopped it on SW 19th Avenue. Martinez and Cannon were taken into custody, according to the report.
Cannon told deputies that she and Martinez had been awake for a few days hanging out. She said they were driving around, drinking and smoking, and she woke up at the victim’s property. Cannon said she didn’t remember arriving at the house and that she woke up when the victim opened the closet door, the report said.
Cannon said Martinez started pushing on the door and broke it from the hinges. She said the victim ran out of the bedroom and that she and Martinez escaped through an unlocked window. Cannon said they ran around the house to the garage and opened the garage door and got into the vehicle, according to the report.
Cannon said Martinez told the victim to move his vehicle so he could leave, but the victim refused. She said Martinez put the car into drive and hit the victim’s car, put it in reverse and hit the garage wall, and repeated the motion until they could get out of the garage, the report said.
Martinez’s account of the incident was identical to Cannon’s statement. He said he was driving the vehicle and that Cannon fell asleep. He said he woke her up to take her inside the victim’s residence, where they got some sleep in the closet, according to the report.
Cannon and Martinez were taken to the Marion County Jail. Martinez is being held without bond while Cannon is being held on $2,000 bond. Both will appear in Marion County Court on June 6.