A 27-year-old Ocala man was charged with criminal mischief after he admitted to going on a destructive rampage at his mother’s house because he was angry other people at the residence wouldn’t keep partying with him.
A Marion County sheriff’s deputy responded recently to a residence on NW 19th Avenue, where the victim said there had been an ongoing verbal altercation the previous night between her son – Ruben Rodriguez, of 3700 NW 19th Ave. – and his girlfriend.
The victim said she believed that during the course of the altercation, Rodriguez broke various items in her home and also damaged her vehicle, a 2000 Mercury Grand Marquis, which was outside the home. She said she didn’t see it happen but suspected he did it because he has broken items of hers in the past, according to the sheriff’s office report.
Items broken inside the home included three wooden doors that were off the hinges valued at $200 each, a Samsung curve TV valued at $800, and a four-channel camera system valued at $150. Outside the home, the rear driver’s-side of the victim’s vehicle window was broken and there was damage to the frame of the door. Damage to the vehicle was $500, bringing the total value of all damage to $2,050, the report said.
The deputy contacted Rodriquez and his girlfriend, and they agreed to meet at a local park. Rodriguez’s girlfriend said there had been no physical or verbal altercation between her and Rodriguez, but he did become upset the previous night and started breaking things inside the residence. She also said he had cuts on his hands from punching various objects throughout the house, according to the report.
Asked what happened the previous night, Rodriguez said he became angry because other people at the residence would not keep “partying” with him. He said he broke various items in the house and that it was “all him” who broke the items. Rodriguez said he broke the rear driver’s side window of his mother’s vehicle by hitting it with a log, the report said.
Rodriguez showed the deputy his forehead and knuckles, which had small cuts on them. He said the injuries were from punching and headbutting various objects in the house and breaking them. Rodriguez further claimed there was no verbal or physical altercation between him and his girlfriend, according to the report.
Rodriquez was taken to the Marion County Jail, where he was released on $2,000 bond. He is scheduled to appear in Marion County Court on Feb. 9.