Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Eric Calvin Burke, 40, was arrested early this morning after allegedly entering the home of a client without permission and making coffee while her 12-year-old daughter was home alone and then returning to her residence after he was trespassed.

The victim told the responding Alachua County Sheriff’s Deputy that Burke did yard work for her on December 11, and she came home on her lunch break to find that he had made a pot of coffee. She said she never gave him permission to go inside her home and her 12-year-old daughter was home during the incident. Burke reportedly said he thought he could go inside because the door was unlocked and he was doing yard work; Burke’s address is within easy walking distance of the victim’s home.

The victim said she told Burke that she didn’t want him to do any more yard work for her and that he should not come back onto her property.

On December 28, the victim called law enforcement to report that Burke was trying to enter her property while she was on her front porch. The responding deputy made contact with Burke, who was standing in the roadway, and told him that he could not enter her property or do any more yard work for the victim.

Less than an hour later, the victim called again to say that Burke had entered her property, and he was arrested at that time.

The victim told the deputy that after the first deputy left, Burke started to walk up her driveway, and she confronted him and told him she would call the police. She said he walked away but slowly walked down the fence line and crouched behind some bushes.

Burke has been charged with trespassing of an occupied dwelling for the December 11 incident and trespass after warning for the December 28 incident.

Burke is also facing a Notice to Appear for harassment with repeated phone calls and a sworn complaint for stealing a bike from another resident of his neighborhood; the victim in that case said Burke threw the bike over a fence and yelled, “Sorry!” before riding away on the bike.

Burke has 10 felony convictions (none violent) and six misdemeanor convictions (one violent) and has served three state prison sentences, with his most recent release in 2020. Judge Luis Bustamante set bail on the new charges at $10,000.

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.