Lady Lake police arrested a homeless man found sleeping in a ditch next to U.S. Hwy. 27/441.
Officers were called at 3:30 p.m. Tuesday to the intersection of U.S. Hwy. 27/441 and Longview Avenue where they found the “apparently intoxicated” man passed out, according to an arrest report from the Lady Lake Police Department. It was the second time this month that 54-year-old Mark Roberts had been found sleeping near the busy thoroughfare.
In the most recent arrest, Roberts was in possession of a red tote bag that contained three Natural Light tall boys, one of them empty. There were also two minibar-sized bottles of “99 Proof” in the bag. Roberts was “highly combative” with the EMS and law enforcement personnel who attempted to help him. He was arrested on a charge of disorderly intoxication and booked at the Lake County Jail on $500 bond.
He had been released from the jail Dec. 15 after serving five days behind bars after a similar arrest.
It was the latest in a string of arrests:
• Roberts was arrested last month after an intoxicated outburst at a Publix store in The Villages.
• He was taken into custody in October after a Halloween pumpkin-smashing incident at a woman’s home.
• Roberts was arrested in August after a tirade that began when he was spotted with an open beer at Wawa in Lady Lake.
• In 2015, Roberts had been jailed without bond after violating his probation on a charge of disorderly conduct. At the time he was placed on probation, he had been ordered by a judge to complete anger management and stay away from alcohol.
