An Ocala man who has spent most of 2020 in the Marion County Jail is back again after being accused of prowling around homes in the area of NW 14th Avenue in the early morning hours Tuesday.
Quandarius Terrell Evans, 25, of 8591 NW 12th Court, was charged with loitering or prowling and possession of a weapon by a convicted Florida felon. Evans was released from jail Sept. 6 after serving eight months for possession of more than 20 grams of marijuana, two counts of giving a false ID to law enforcement and multiple probation violations.
A juvenile who lives at a residence on NW 14th Avenue told a Marion County sheriff’s deputy said she went outside around 3 a.m. to check her vehicle and saw a man leaving the property from the area where the vehicle was located, according to the sheriff’s office report.
The Marion County Aviation Unit helicopter (Air 1) responded and located a man – later identified as Evans – hiding behind houses and running through backyards. Air 1 directed deputies to a pickup truck on the 8500 block of NW 15th Avenue that Evans was hiding beneath. As a deputy pulled up, Evans ran from the truck to a shed, where he was detained, the report said.
After being read his Miranda warning, Evans said he was riding his bike in the Winn-Dixie parking lot picking up trash. He said someone was harassing him and he didn’t want to go to his own residence, so he instead went to a residence on NW 14th Avenue where he knows a woman named Mrs. Mobley, according to the report.
Evans said he didn’t want to get into trouble for being on the property, so he ran when he saw law enforcement. He said his actions weren’t unusual for a law-abiding person. Evans said he placed an object under the porch light, next to the porch, of a residence on NW 86th Lane. The deputy recovered a .25 caliber handgun at the location. Evans said he’s had the gun for about 1 ½ years and he didn’t know if it was stolen. He said he left his bike at the 14th Avenue residence, the report said.
The deputy found the bike at the residence, where the resident said it was not hers and did not belong to anyone who lived there. The deputy also found a black glove that the resident said did not belong o the property. Evans said the glove was his and he ran because he is a convicted felon and had a firearm in his possession, according to the report.
The resident said she had seen Evans in the area before but she didn’t know him. She said Mrs. Mobley does not reside at the residence, the report said.
Evans is being held on $10,500 bond and is due to appear in Marion County Court on Jan. 19, 2021.