PANAMA CITY BEACH, Florida — A Jamaican fugitive and undocumented immigrant, needed for his alleged position in a brutal 2019 kidnapping, torture, and arson case in Massachusetts, was captured yesterday in a dramatic operation in Panama Metropolis Seashore, Florida.
Dushane Jerome Simon, 26, was arrested on Thursday by members of the Bay County Sheriff’s Workplace (BCSO) Felony and Particular Investigations Divisions, alongside the US Marshals Fugitive Activity Pressure, in keeping with the sheriff’s workplace.
Simon is accused of taking part in a house invasion on Roosevelt Avenue, Springfield, Massachusetts, on September 30, 2019. The incident left the sufferer critically injured after being robbed, kidnapped, tortured, and set on hearth. Investigators imagine the sufferer was focused due to marijuana being grown on the property.
Authorities reported that Simon fled Massachusetts previous to standing trial for his alleged involvement within the assault. On January 15, Massachusetts authorities contacted BCSO to help in finding Simon and confirmed they’d extradite him if apprehended.
After initiating surveillance, Simon was discovered at an house on Panama Metropolis Seashore. Upon realizing he was being pursued, Simon tried to evade seize by leaping from a third-story balcony and fleeing into a close-by wooded space. Legislation enforcement officers rapidly apprehended him a brief distance away.
Simon is at the moment held as a fugitive on the Bay County Jail, with a US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainer positioned on him. Authorities confirmed he doesn’t have a sound visa and is topic to a closing deportation order, which means he can be deported after finishing authorized proceedings.
On the time of the 2019 assault, Simon, then 21, was reportedly certainly one of three people concerned within the violent house invasion. Through the crime, he was carrying a GPS ankle monitor from the Massachusetts Probation Division. Investigators imagine Simon eliminated the gadget and fled the state, because the bracelet was later discovered discarded alongside I-495 in Japanese Massachusetts.
The suspects are accused of stealing money, a automobile, and different objects throughout the invasion. The sufferer, who sustained extreme burns and different vital accidents, survived the ordeal.
Authorities proceed to research Simon’s position within the crime, and he stays in custody pending extradition to Massachusetts.