Skip to Content, Navigation, or Footer.
We inform. You decide.
Friday, March 29, 2024

Two days after the general election, a man from High Springs, Florida, punched a Hispanic gas station employee in the back of the head, claiming the attack was “for Donald Trump,” Gainesville Police said.

After reviewing surveillance-camera footage from the Gate Food Post gas station, located at 3001 NW 13th St., GPD arrested Caleb Joseph Illig, 23, on Sunday on a charge of simple battery.

At about 1:30 a.m. Nov. 10 — a day after Trump defeated Hillary Clinton in the presidential election — Illig sat inside a car at the gas station, according to the report. He noticed the Hispanic employee, a Gainesville resident, cleaning the parking lot and approached him.

The man had his back turned to Illig, according to the report. Illig then punched him in the back of the head and yelled, “Let’s Trump down.”

The employee turned around and asked Illig why he hit him. “This is for Donald Trump,” he replied, according to the report.

Illig proceeded to repeatedly punch the man, who did not hit back and attempted to evade the attack, according to the report. Another employee who saw the altercation then called the police.

After this, Illig and another person returned to the car and drove away. Illig told police he could not remember the incident, because he was on medication for bipolar disorder and drank alcohol that night, according to the report.

He was taken to the Alachua County Jail, where he was released Monday on his own recognizance. Illig declined to comment.

Support your local paper
Donate Today
The Independent Florida Alligator has been independent of the university since 1971, your donation today could help #SaveStudentNewsrooms. Please consider giving today.

Powered by SNworks Solutions by The State News
All Content © 2024 The Independent Florida Alligator and Campus Communications, Inc.