PAISLEY, Fla.—A man and a woman are wanted by Lake County Sheriff’s Office detectives after a Paisley man was found bound with zip ties in his home Sunday afternoon.
LCSO responded to the home after someone reported finding the man with his hands bound behind his back, shortly before 12:30 p.m. Sunday, according to a probable cause affidavit.
The victim, Marvin Bottom Jr., said Kayla Berlinski, arrived at his home Sunday and he confronted her about $30 he believed she stole from him on a prior visist to his home. Berlinksi, wearing both a jacket and a hat emblazoned with “POLICE” told Bottom she was a law enforcement officer, and she was going to arrest Bottom for possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, the affidavit states.
Bottom reached for his phone to call authorities and Berlinksi allegedly pushed his head toward the floor and a man, later identified as James Rohrer, then entered the victim’s home, took the phone and bound Bottom’s hands behind his back with zip ties.
Berlinksi is accused of emptying the victim’s pockets as Rohrer went through the home and stole multiple items, including a .40 Glock handgun, cash and multiple electronics.
The victim allowed detectives to view footage from his camera system and the video shows a man, positively identified by an LCSO detective as Rohrer, and Berlinksi, who was wearing a jacket “clearly marked” with “POLICE” on the left breast area and the back, in addition to a camouflage hat, also marked “POLICE,” the affidavit states.
Another video shows the pair leaving the home with a grey bag and electronics and then entering a black Nissan pickup truck with an identifiable license plate. A man identified as the registered owner of the truck was also captured on video entering the truck, and he was pulled over while travelling in the area and questioned by detectives. He said he picked the pair up at the victim’s address and dropped them off in Volusia County. He told detectives an unidentified person told him about the robbery later, but denied having any knowledge of it while it was occurring. Inside Lake is not naming him because he was not charged with a crime.
The pair is facing several serious charges, including armed home invasion, kidnapping, grand theft and grand theft of a firearm. Berlinski is facing an additional charge of impersonating a law enforcement officer. Recent photos of the suspects were unavailable at press time; if you have information on their whereabouts, call LCSO at 352-343-2101.
