Staff report

ALACHUA COUNTY, Fla. – Nathan Charles Homstad, 41, was arrested yesterday and charged with burglary of an occupied structure and aggravated battery on a person over 65 years of age.

At about 1 p.m. yesterday, Alachua County Sheriff’s Deputies responded to a call about a suspicious person in the Orange Heights area. The victim said he heard somebody turning the knob to his back door, and when he looked at surveillance video from his screened-in back porch, he saw a man, later identified as Homstad, sitting in one of his chairs and listening to white headphones. The victim said he had never seen the man before.

The victim said he spoke through the camera’s speakers to try to get the man to leave, but the man did not respond and stayed on the porch. The victim finally armed himself out of concern for the safety of his wife and confronted Homstad. The victim told deputies that Homstad made an unintelligible statement and stayed in the chair for some time before finally standing up and pushing the victim. The victim followed Homstad off the property, and Homstad allegedly swung at the victim but missed. The victim is 79 years old.

Deputies found Homstad at the Shell gas station on U.S. Hwy 301, and he and his clothing matched the description provided by the victim, including the white headphones. Deputies viewed the surveillance video and noted that Homstad was not invited onto the property and did not leave when asked.

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Post Miranda, Homstad did not make any statements; deputies reported that he kept his eyes closed and refused to move without assistance.

Homstad, who is described as homeless, was arrested in March for squatting in a vacant apartment and giving an officer a fake Norwegian name. He has an out-of-state criminal history and an active warrant from Minnesota. Formal charges were filed, and he was referred to mental health court but declined to participate. A psychological competency report was completed in July, and the charges were dropped on September 1.

Bail information is unavailable on weekends.

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.