A Leesburg man who was held at gunpoint in a minimart by a customer with a concealed carry permit is behind bars in the Lake County Jail.
Leesburg Police officers on March 1 scrambled to the Leesburg Wawa, located at the intersection of U.S. Hwy. 441 and Griffin Road, after receiving a 911 call reporting a battery in progress. While en route to the convenience store, officers were told that someone there had a firearm.
Upon arrival, an officer saw a man holding a handgun pointed at another man on the floor. As he entered the store, the man placed his handgun into a concealed holster in his waistband. The officer ordered him to put his hands on his head and removed his firearm, the report says.
The officer was then told that the man had the firearm and used it on the man sitting on the floor to stop an aggravated battery in progress. The officer then detained the man sitting on the floor, who was later identified as 23-year-old Omilson Oceant-Shirley, a report says.
The officer saw several people kneeling and after asking them to move aside, he saw a large amount of blood on the floor that was coming from an injured man’s head. The officer quickly requested Lake EMS to respond to the scene, the report says.
Officers collected statements from many witnesses, including a woman who said she also was battered by Oceant-Shirley. Officers determined that the man who held Oceant-Shirley at gunpoint had done so to stop him from committing battery after confirming that he had a valid concealed carry permit, his firearm was returned.
The injured man said he wished to press charges against Oceant-Shirley but wasn’t able to complete a written statement due to his injuries. Paramedics with Lake EMS determined that the man needed further medical treatment and he was transported to Leesburg Regional Medical Center.
The second victim told officers she was inside the Wawa when she saw Oceant-Shirley strike the man until he fell to the ground and then start kicking him in the head. She said she shouted for Oceant-Shirley to quit battering the man and when he stopped, she tried to provide assistance. But she said Oceant-Shirley returned and pushed her away from the victim, causing her to fall to the floor, the report says.
Officers also discovered that Oceant-Shirley had been trespassed from the Wawa on Feb. 27 and had returned several times. The manager said Oceant-Shirley loiters on the property and had been sleeping in the men’s restroom, the report says.
Oceant-Shirley, who lives at 1344 Griffin Rd. in Leesburg, was then transported to the Leesburg Police Department to start the booking process for him to be admitted to the Lake County Jail. During that process, he stood up and shouted obscenities before running toward an officer and pushing him into a nearby wall, causing a small scratch on his elbow. Oceant-Shirley also started spitting toward the officers and attempted to bite one of them while trying to trip him, the report says.
The officers quickly gained control of Oceant-Shirley and he eventually was transported to the jail, where he was charged with aggravated battery causing bodily harm or disability, aggravated battery on a law enforcement officer, battery, trespassing and a violation of probation charge for a previous battery charge. He was being held on $5,000 bond and is due in court Aug. 19 and Aug. 30 to answer to the charges.
