A Villager was jailed on a felony charge after a battle with another golfer over golf balls.
John Francis Stinnett, 61, of the Village of St. Johns, was arrested a charge of battery on a person over the age of 65 on Saturday by Sumter County sheriff’s deputies.
Stinnett had been golfing that morning and was playing behind a 76-year-old man. That man told deputies he had “grabbed two golf balls from the green and proceeded to the next green,” according to the arrest report. He said Stinnett, who stands 6 feet 1 inch tall and weighs 185 pounds, “approached him demanding the return of his golf balls.” He said Stinnett “pushed him in the chest with both hands causing him to stumble backwards.” Stinnett grabbed the man by his wrist and “pried the golf balls from his grasp.” Stinnett left in a golf cart.
Multiple witnesses told deputies they had seen Stinnett push the other man and take the golf balls from him.
The Maryland native was booked at the Sumter County Detention Center and released after posting $2,000 bond.
