Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – A man named Javaris Eugene Kates, 34, was apprehended yesterday for the alleged theft of a car after discovering keys that were unintentionally dropped.

A Detective from the Gainesville Police Department explained that the victim accidentally dropped her keys on the morning of July 22 as she left her apartment. She was picked up by someone else that morning and only realized her keys were missing when she returned home in the evening to find her car was missing.

Upon reviewing footage from her doorbell camera, the victim saw a black male, later identified as Kates, walking through the hallway. When he noticed the keys on the ground, he knocked on the door but didn’t get a response. The doorbell camera captured a clear image of him during the knock. After leaving initially, he returned about six minutes later, picked up the keys, and departed again, with the keys visibly in his hand.

The victim had attached an AirTag to the keys and shared its location, which indicated it was near the pool area of the Days Inn (920 NW 69th Terrace). She noted the last signal was at 8:11 p.m., after which the AirTag seemed to be deactivated.

Officers from the Alachua County Sheriff’s Office and Gainesville Police Department arrived at the Days Inn, where they located the victim’s vehicle in the parking lot. Though the car was recovered by the victim, the keys and AirTag were not found.

Using facial recognition software, another detective identified the man from the doorbell video as Kates. On August 7, an officer visited the Days Inn to obtain surveillance footage. However, a manager reportedly stated there were no external cameras at the location but recognized Kates. The manager mentioned that Kates had not registered as a guest but had recently been staying with a relative also named Kates.

The detective noted that the relative’s room was just two rooms away from the pool area and right around the corner from the parking spot where the vehicle was found.

Two witnesses who had known Kates well in the past reportedly identified him in the doorbell video and provided his name to the detective.

Kates, whose address is listed as GRACE Marketplace, has 12 felony convictions (four violent) and 19 misdemeanor convictions (five violent); he has served four state prison sentences and was just released on July 12, 2025, after serving a three-year sentence for battery on a person over 65. He is currently on probation in the same case. Judge William Davis set bail on the new charge at $50,000; Kates will also be booked for violating probation.

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.