GAINESVILLE, Fla. – In a troubling development, Ma’chir Damarius Miller, aged 21, faces charges for the false imprisonment of a resident at the Tacachale facility, accused of restricting the individual’s movement within their room.
Prompted by a complaint from the Department of Children and Families, the Florida Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit launched an investigation. The complaint alleged that Miller unlawfully confined a Medicaid recipient living at the Tacachale Center in a room, sparking serious concerns.
Miller, employed as a Residential Unit Specialist on December 20, 2025, found himself placed on administrative leave the very next day, leading to his resignation on December 23, painting a grim picture of the incident’s aftermath.
The situation came to light when a nurse at Tacachale noticed an unusual situation while distributing medication in the victim’s building. Disturbed by a loud banging, she discovered a gait belt securing the victim’s bedroom door to a handrail, effectively trapping the resident inside. Upon questioning, Miller confessed he had used the belt, but intriguingly, he declined to disclose his identity immediately. Thankfully, the nurse reported that the resident appeared unharmed and untroubled during the ordeal.
In discussions with a Tacachale investigator, Miller admitted to using the gait belt, explaining that he had acted under pressure, worried the resident might disrupt the medication distribution process. To ensure the victim was uninjured, he claimed to have spent approximately 10 minutes with him after the incident, a claim that adds another layer to the unfolding narrative.
The training manager at Tacachale reportedly provided records showing that Miller had attended training on the facility’s policies, and she said that confining a resident to his room was not consistent with the training or authority of Miller.
State investigators attempted to contact Miller by phone, but he did not respond; they went to his listed address, where an elderly woman reportedly said nobody named Ma’chir Miller lived at that address and she did not know who he was. Investigators photographed the tags of several cars parked in the driveway at that address, and one of them was registered to Miller. The investigators went back to the same address on a different date, and a different woman answered the door and reportedly said Miller lived there but was not home.
A sworn complaint was filed on August 12, and a warrant for Miller’s arrest was issued the same day; he was arrested on August 18.
Miller has been charged with false imprisonment. He is on pre-trial release in Orange County for making a written threat to kill and aggravated assault with a firearm; he also has an active warrant for violating his release conditions in Orange County. Judge William Davis set bail at $100,000, but Miller’s attorney has filed a motion requesting his release on his own recognizance and stating that he is currently employed as a CNA. That hearing is scheduled for August 27.