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Thursday, March 28, 2024

Ocala man arrested after allegedly breaking into victim’s home, stealing over $7,000 worth of items

A 47-year-old Ocala man was arrested after he allegedly broke into a female victim’s home and stole over $7,000 worth of items.

On February 15, a Marion County Sheriff’s Office deputy responded to a local residence in reference to a burglary. Upon arrival, the deputy made contact with a female reportee who advised that she conducted routine checks of the residence for the female owner/victim who was currently incarcerated at Marion County Jail.

The reportee advised the deputy that she had stopped by the residence on February 7. During her next visit on February 14, she noticed that the back door was unlocked, and some items appeared to have been stolen from the residence.

According to the victim, the following items were missing: three televisions, a video game console, six video games, three computers, several purses, and multiple pairs of shoes. The total estimated value of the missing items was over $7,500.

The deputy noticed that there were several scratch marks near the locking mechanism on the rear sliding glass door which appeared to have been made by a tool.

The victim, who was still incarcerated, spoke with the deputy over the phone and provided the name of a possible suspect: Kenneth Mizell.

Kenneth Mizell
Kenneth Mizell

According to the MCSO report, the victim was arrested on December 29, 2021 at her residence. Prior to her arrest, the victim was detained outside the residence while narcotic units awaited a search warrant.

Once the search warrant was received, the agents began to search the victim’s property, and they heard prying sounds coming from the master bedroom. The agents observed a man, identified as Mizell, who was attempting to enter the residence through the bedroom’s window.

Mizell had two screwdrivers and he claimed to be a maintenance man who was there to fix the window. The agents observed that the window in question was functioning properly and did not need repair. The MCSO report also noted that Mizell had attempted to gain entry into the only room in the residence that contained narcotics and weapons.

The victim admitted to the agents that she knew Mizell, though she stated that he was not supposed to be at the residence.

Mizell was arrested on charges of attempted burglary and possession of burglary tools, and he spent 41 days at Marion County Jail until the charges were ultimately dropped. He was released from jail on February 8, around the time that the burglary occurred at the victim’s residence.

During an investigation, the MCSO deputy discovered through a pawn search on Mizell that an Xbox One video game console and six video games had been sold to a local Gamestop on February 28 for $186.56. The console matched a description provided by the victim, and the same six video games had been reported as stolen.

According to the MCSO report, Mizell was seen on the store’s video surveillance footage selling the items, and his signature and fingerprint were on the receipt.

On May 5, the deputy visited Mizell at his residence. Mizell claimed that he knew nothing about the burglary incident at the victim’s home.

When asked about pawning the console and video games, he claimed that those items belonged to a friend named “Anthony,” and this friend had asked him to sell the items. The deputy advised Mizell that the pawned console and video games matched a description of items that were missing from the victim’s residence, and he responded by stating that he would be contacting his attorney.

A warrant was later issued for Mizell’s arrest, and he was arrested and transported to Marion County Jail on May 18. He is currently being held on $14,000 bond and he is facing felony charges for burglary, fraud, grand theft (over $5,000 but less than $10,000), and dealing in stolen property.

A court date has not been scheduled yet, according to jail records.