Staff report
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Tequandre Jacarius Flowers, 19, was arrested yesterday and charged with shooting into a dwelling and discharging a firearm in public for allegedly firing at least 11 shots in the Sweetwater Square apartment complex on January 29.
At 1:34 p.m. on January 29, multiple calls were received about shots fired at Sweetwater Square, 3101 NE 15th Street. A responding Gainesville Police Department (GPD) officer viewed surveillance video and reportedly saw Flowers on the sidewalk outside Building G at 1:25 p.m. with two other males; all three are reportedly known members of the VGP (Village Green Posse) gang. Sweetwater Square was previously known as Village Green Apartments.
The officer reported that at about 1:29 p.m., three unknown individuals approached the wooded area southeast of the apartment complex and fired several shots at Flowers and his two companions. Moments later, the officer reported that Flowers had a gun in his hand and fired several shots in the direction of Building J while running eastbound through the parking lot. The officer reported that muzzle flashes from Flowers’ gun could be seen on the video. Flowers crouched behind a maroon vehicle and allegedly fired more shots in the direction of NE 31st Avenue before running northbound toward Building J. The officer called the shooting “reckless,” noting that many people are in the area at that time of day.
GPD reportedly found eleven .45 caliber casings in the parking lot near Building G.
One .45 caliber round reportedly went through the front window of an occupied house on NE 31st Avenue; an officer reported that the trajectory was consistent with the shots fired by Flowers from the parking lot at Sweetwater Square. The bullet caused about $500 in damage to the house.
Flowers has juvenile criminal convictions and was arrested in August 2022 for armed robbery and carrying a concealed firearm without a permit; bail was originally set at $300,000, but about a week later, Flowers’ lawyer filed a motion for reduction of bond, based on his inability to afford the bond. At the time, according to the motion, Flowers was an Eastside High School student and would live with his mother at Sweetwater Square. A few days later, Judge Phillip Pena ordered that Flowers be released on his own recognizance with a GPS monitor, and the day after that, the charges were dropped.
According to formal charges filed in June 2023, Flowers engaged in “brawling or fighting” in September 2022, just a month after his release on the armed robbery charge. In August 2023, Flowers entered a plea of nolo contendere to disorderly conduct, and Judge Thomas Jaworski withheld adjudication of guilt and ordered him to pay court costs of $326. Flowers has not paid anything toward the judgment, and it has been turned over to a collection agency.
Judge Denise Ferrero set bail at $115,000, the amount recommended on the warrant for Flowers’ arrest.
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.
