POLK COUNTY, Fla. – A series of dangerous attacks in Wahneta ended this weekend after Polk County deputies arrested an illegal immigrant for allegedly trying to burn down a neighbor’s home and smashing up a local grocery store.
Marcelino Gillen-Hernandez, 60, is now being held in the Polk County Jail on an ICE detainer after reportedly confessing to multiple felonies that have been upgraded in severity due to his immigration status.
The situation came to a head early Saturday morning, January 31, when a homeowner on 11th Street West noticed a strange glow coming from underneath her mobile home.
She rushed outside to find a wooden pallet packed with tree branches shoved under the structure and set ablaze. After dousing the flames with a garden hose, she spotted Hernandez nearby, who allegedly sparked a second fire using tiki torch fuel right in front of her.
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When deputies arrived, they found the citronella fuel in the basket of Hernandez’s bicycle. According to official affidavits, Hernandez—a Mexican national in the U.S. illegally—claimed he set the fires because “people at a residence he used to live at” told him to do it.
However, the arson was only part of the story. Once in custody, Hernandez reportedly admitted to a separate weeks-long campaign of vandalism against the Placita Mexico store on Rifle Range Road.
He told investigators he was “frustrated” with the store owner and the neighborhood, leading him to attack the business on three different nights. He allegedly used a combination of rocks and a hammer to smash windows and doors, though metal security bars kept him from getting inside.
“This suspect – who is in the country illegally – committed very serious felonies while taking advantage of someone who allowed him to live in a trailer on her property. He caused over $1600 worth of damage to a local business as well. We also learned he threatened to kill a 74-year-old man with a knife in 2024 and was arrested for aggravated assault on a person over 65 years old,” said Sheriff Grady Judd. “He should have been deported back then and perhaps he wouldn’t have been here to terrorize and victimize others.”
Because Hernandez is in the country illegally, Florida law allows prosecutors to enhance his charges by one degree. He currently faces two counts of arson—now classified as capital felonies—along with three counts of burglary and multiple counts of criminal mischief.
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