A Palm Bay, Florida Homeowners Association board member was arrested last month after allegedly pulling a gun on three kids fishing at a lake in his subdivision, taking their equipment and throwing the rods, reels and tackle into the woods, according to court documents.
Police charged 57-year-old Kyle Patrick Tate with criminal mischief and grand theft as a result of the incident.
A court affidavit filed in Brevard County, Florida alleges that on April 14, officers with the Palm Bay Police Department were dispatched to a suspicious incident at Stillwater Lakes, a subdivision owned and managed by an HOA.
FOX 35 in Orlando confirmed Tate is the president of the community’s HOA.
The responding officers spoke with three kids who were fishing on the south side of the lake in Stillwater Lakes, who said a man, later identified as Tate, walked up to them while holding a firearm and telling them to get off his property.
But the property belonged to the HOA, not Tate, according to police.
Still, Tate grabbed their fishing rods, reels, tackle boxes and other equipment, before throwing the equipment into the woods and damaging them.
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The kids told police they estimated the fishing rods and reels to be valued at $1,900; the tackle boxes and lures inside to be valued at $150; and cast nets to be valued at $150.
Tate also allegedly took a phone valued at around $1,500 from one of the kids, which has not yet been recovered, court documents say.
After learning of the situation, police arrested Tate on April 14, and he was booked into the Brevard County Jail.
He now faces charges of grand theft of property valued between $750 and $7,500, and criminal mischief greater than $1,000. Both charges are classified as third-degree felonies in Florida.
Tate was held on $5,000 bond – $2,500 per charge – which he later posted.
Original article source: Florida HOA president pulls gun on 3 kids fishing at lake before throwing tackle into woods: court docs
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