Staff Report
HIGH SPRINGS, Fla. – Authorities have apprehended 24-year-old Tyuanna Daja Towns following allegations of a home invasion on Tuesday, which led to substantial property damage. The following day, she reportedly returned to the residence, assaulting a woman inside.
At approximately 9:58 a.m. on January 28, officers from the High Springs Police Department (HSPD) arrived at a residence on CR 340. A witness at the scene was restraining Towns, preventing further harm to a woman within the house.
According to the officer, HSPD had been called to this same address the previous day, discovering extensive destruction. Most of the windows, the back door, security cameras, and interior furnishings had been damaged; several televisions were allegedly smashed with a hammer. This destruction took place while the homeowner was absent. However, Towns reportedly sent several text messages claiming responsibility for the damage. By the time officers arrived, she had left the scene and was not taken into custody then.
The incident on Wednesday unfolded as the door was left ajar for repair crews addressing the prior day’s destruction. Towns allegedly stormed in and attempted to assault the victim following a brief verbal altercation. The victim confirmed Towns neither resided in the home nor was she welcome there.
Law enforcement officers have estimated the damage to the property to be in the realm of “several thousand dollars, if not more.”
Post Miranda, Towns reportedly said, “Anything in there that’s broken, I did it yesterday.” She also reportedly admitted to burglarizing the home the previous day.
Towns has been charged with burglary of an occupied structure, felony property damage, and assault. She has no criminal history, and Judge Meshon Rawls ordered her held without bail pending a hearing on a motion from the State Attorney’s office to hold her without bail until trial; if the judge denies the motion, bail will be set at that hearing.
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.
