POLK COUNTY, Fla. – For Jeremy Jones, freedom was incredibly short-lived. The 49-year-old resident of Mulberry found himself back in handcuffs less than a day after walking out of the county jail.
Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd gave the details of the arrest, describing an encounter that happened late at night in Bradley Junction, a small community just south of Mulberry.
Deputies were patrolling the area when they spotted Jones walking down Orange Street. Because it was late and the behavior seemed suspicious, the officers decided to stop him. According to Sheriff Judd, Jones realized what was happening immediately.
As the deputies started to get out of their car, Jones allegedly shouted an expletive—which the Sheriff jokingly referred to as saying “fire truck”—and stated out loud that he was going back to prison.
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The situation escalated quickly from there. When a deputy asked Jones to take his hands out of his pockets and remove the cover from his head, he refused to cooperate. Instead, he sat down and insisted he wasn’t going back to prison.
Moments later, he began emptying his pockets, throwing items onto the ground. Deputies discovered the items were methamphetamine and a meth pipe.
The arrest was particularly frustrating for law enforcement because Jones had been released from the county jail that very same day. He had previously been held on charges related to domestic violence and felony assault with a weapon.
Sheriff Judd noted that Jones has a history of violent arrests. Given that he was caught prowling with drugs so soon after his release, Judd stated that keeping him locked up is a matter of keeping the community safe.
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