Staff report
MELROSE, Fla. – A 36-year-old Melrose man was arrested Wednesday after deputies say he broke into his neighbors’ fenced yard, slashed tires on two vehicles, and smashed a windshield despite previously being trespassed from the property.
According to an Alachua County Sheriff’s Deputy, the victims came home on July 11 and discovered extensive damage to two vehicles. One vehicle had a shattered windshield and three newly installed tires that had been cut, while a second vehicle also had three tires slashed. The victims reportedly gave deputies surveillance footage that showed Austin Palmer damaging both vehicles; the deputy noted Palmer had been formally trespassed from the property just days earlier, on July 6.
The deputy reported that the video appeared to show Palmer using an axe to cut the tires and a brick to break the windshield. Afterward, Palmer reportedly left the fenced yard while still holding both the brick and the axe.
During the earlier July 6 trespass warning, Palmer was barred from the victims’ property for one year. A deputy documented during that encounter that Palmer was carrying an axe, and when asked about it, Palmer reportedly described it as “a sign of friendship from the Old Statement.”
Deputies estimated the total vehicle damage at more than $2,600.
Palmer faces charges of armed burglary, felony property damage, trespassing while armed with a dangerous weapon, and misdemeanor property damage. Court records show he has no criminal convictions. Judge Susan Miller-Jones set his bail at $225,000 and ordered a mental health evaluation.
Articles about arrests are based on reports from law enforcement agencies. The charges listed are taken from the arrest report and/or court records and are only accusations. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
