Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Tyeesha Teresa Smith, 21, was arrested early this morning after allegedly walking into an occupied house; the victim said someone had damaged the interior of the house and had eaten his food while he was out of town for a week.

At about 2:42 a.m. on June 19, a Gainesville Police Department officer made contact with the victim at Depot Park, where he had reportedly caught up to Smith after she ran from his house.

The victim, who lives a few blocks north of Depot Park, said he returned home from a one-week trip to find his home in disarray. He said Smith walked through the front door of his house “as if she had been there before,” but he had armed himself with a gun, and when she saw the gun, she ran. He told the officer he caught up with her in the Depot Park parking lot and waited there with her until the officer arrived.

Post Miranda, Smith reportedly said that earlier in the day, an unknown black male with gold teeth told her she could borrow a bike from the victim’s home, so some time later, she walked inside to speak to the unknown male, thinking he lived at the house. She said she saw the victim when she entered the house and added that she didn’t have any further information about the unknown black male.

The officer reported that the house’s GRU meter was damaged, two smoke detectors had been pulled from the ceiling, the victim’s belongings were scattered throughout the house, furniture was moved to different rooms (including a couch in the kitchen), female underwear was in the house, another female’s driver’s license was found in the house, half-eaten food was on the kitchen counters, and food was scattered throughout the house. The officer noted that it looked like multiple people had been burglarizing the house.

The property damage was estimated at $235, and the food was valued at $70.

The victim said he did not know Smith and that she had no lawful reason to be in his house.

Smith has been charged with burglary of an occupied dwelling, petit theft, and property damage under $200. She has no criminal history, and Judge Kristine Van Vorst set bail at $12,500, with bail waived if she is screened and accepted for electronic monitoring.

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.