A Gainesville man was arrested Saturday night after he reportedly fought three police officers while trying to avoid arrest.
According to a Gainesville Police report, Justin Spencer Smoak, 26, was found by police at 8:20 p.m. with Deltrice Simmons, 25, in an abandoned house, located at 2017 SE Second Ave. Smoak, wanted for car theft in Alachua County and traffic offenses in Hillsborough, was found hiding in a closet.
When the officer tried to handcuff Smoak, he began elbowing and grabbing the officer, according to the report. Smoak scratched another officer on the hand and elbowed a third officer in the face before getting handcuffed. He continued to try to escape, pushing the third officer into a wall.
When police searched the room where Smoak was hiding, two bags of tools and more than $300 in stolen items were found. The items had been taken in a burglary the night before, according to the police report.
Smoak was taken to the Alachua County Jail on charges of car theft, grand theft, battery on an officer and resisting arrest with violence. As of press time, he remained in jail in lieu of a $90,000 bond.
Simmons was connected to the robbery and tried to interfere with Smoak’s arrest, according to the report. She was also arrested on charges of grand theft and resisting arrest without violence. As of press time, she remained at the Alachua County Jail in lieu of a $15,000 bond.
[A version of this story ran on page 3 on 1/26/2015 under the headline “Police: GNV man resists arrest, attacks officers"]
