Welcome to Arrest Stories. A thirty-seven-year-old Florida man was arrested after allegedly smashing what he thought was his ex-girlfriend's SUV with a hammer in a Publix parking lot, but the vehicle actually belonged to an innocent employee. Here's what may have happened.
On an undisclosed date in Ormond-by-the-Sea, Florida, Justin Allen took a hammer to a white SUV parked outside a Publix grocery store. According to police reports, Allen believed the vehicle belonged to his ex-girlfriend who he claimed had left him and stolen his belongings. However, the SUV actually belonged to a Publix employee who had no connection to Allen.
Body camera footage shows deputies responding to the scene with car alarms blaring in the background. When a deputy arrived at the parking lot, he found Allen sitting in the front passenger seat of the damaged vehicle, striking the in-car radio with a hammer. The deputy approached with his gun drawn and ordered Allen to exit the SUV.
Allen had smashed both the driver's and passenger's side windows to gain entry into the vehicle. Once inside, he continued his assault on the SUV's interior, focusing his destruction on the radio system. When confronted by law enforcement, Allen dropped the hammer after being ordered out of the car.
Initially, Allen told deputies the vehicle was his, but later changed his story, claiming it was his girlfriend's car and that she had robbed him. Allen explained to officers that the SUV was his ex-girlfriend's and that she had left him and stolen his belongings. He further stated that their relationship had ended and there was no communication between them.
Allen, who works as a contractor, had tools including the hammer in his own vehicle. The case involves ten thousand five hundred dollars in damages. The innocent Publix employee whose vehicle was destroyed had no prior relationship or contact with Allen.
All suspects presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Do not take this report as factual, always verify facts. Thanks for watching Arrest Stories.