WALDO, Fla. – Ja’quel Leroy Richardson, 15, of Waldo, is facing adult charges after authorities said he forced his way into a woman’s apartment and choked her.
Alachua County Sheriff’s deputies were called to the Waldo Villa Apartments at approximately 9:14 a.m. on September 9. The woman told deputies that a Black male who appeared to be about 15 years old knocked on her door and asked whether her “husband” was home. After she replied that he was not, the suspect allegedly seized her throat with both hands and shoved her into the apartment, causing her to fall. She said he continued choking her and restricted her breathing until she screamed, prompting him to run away. The suspect was reportedly wearing a light-colored shirt and blue shorts.
Deputies said they observed redness around the woman’s neck.
At about 12:53 p.m., while deputies remained in the area, an officer encountered Robinson, who was associated with an apartment near the victim’s. He reportedly matched the description of the suspect, although he was wearing different clothing. As deputies spoke with him, the victim saw Robinson through a window and positively identified him as the person who had attacked her.
According to deputies, Robinson’s relatives said he had changed clothes after the incident. They also said he had spent much of the morning alone downstairs while the rest of the family remained upstairs.
Investigators reportedly searched the family’s apartment and found two pairs of blue shorts inside a bag belonging to Robinson. A family member identified one particular pair as the shorts Robinson had been wearing earlier that morning.
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A witness told authorities she saw a juvenile Black male outside the victim’s apartment around 9 a.m. and thought his behavior appeared unusual. She reportedly identified the shorts recovered from Robinson’s apartment as the same ones worn by the juvenile she had seen.
After being read his Miranda rights, Robinson allegedly gave deputies conflicting accounts about his clothing and whether he had changed. He initially denied having any contact with the victim or visiting her apartment. He later said he had knocked on her door several weeks earlier and asked whether her “boyfriend” was there. Robinson reportedly told deputies he had “anger issues” and was upset that day because of family problems.
He later acknowledged knocking on the woman’s door that morning and asking whether her “husband” was home, but said he could not remember what happened afterward. When asked whether he believed the woman had flirted with him or acted friendly toward him, he said he felt that had happened recently. Robinson also reportedly admitted changing clothes and identified the clothing matching the victim’s description.
Robinson was charged as an adult with burglary with battery and battery by strangulation and booked into the Alachua County Jail. In an order transferring the case to adult court, Judge James Colaw set bail at $500,000. Robinson is currently on juvenile probation, and additional details about his criminal history are expected to be released tomorrow.
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