Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Johnnie Hamilton Long, 51, was arrested early yesterday morning and charged with burglary of a construction business.

Employees of Robinson Renovation & Custom Homes Inc. at 6910 W. University Avenue arrived at about 6:30 a.m. yesterday morning to find that some items had been moved around and tools were missing from the business. They told an Alachua County Sheriff’s Deputy that they saw two white men walking toward them, and when they confronted the men, they ran away toward the nearby Baymont Hotel.

The deputy reported that surveillance video showed Long entering the fenced enclosure; he gathered tools, placed them on a push cart, and wheeled them out of the back gate. The video showed him walking toward some dumpsters and then back toward the hotel. The deputy reported that he found the stolen items under a piece of cardboard behind the dumpsters.

The deputy made contact with Long in his room at the hotel; after obtaining consent to search the room, the deputy reportedly found a chop saw and a push cart in the room. The saw belongs to the business and was reportedly one of the items seen on the surveillance video of the burglary.

The hotel’s surveillance cameras reportedly show Long pushing the saw and cart into his room while wearing the same clothing seen on the Robinson Renovation & Custom Homes surveillance video.

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Post Miranda, Long reportedly declined to answer any questions but spontaneously said he would “never steal stuff again.”

Post Miranda, a witness told the deputy that Long said he had stolen tools and had hidden them nearby; the witness said Long had asked him to help move the tools.

A number of tools, with a total estimated value of over $4,000, were recovered.

Long, whose address is listed as GRACE Marketplace, has six felony convictions (none violent). He has served two state prison sentences, with his most recent release in February 2023. Judge Kristine Van Vorst set bail at $25,000.

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.