A Villager allegedly turned off his neighbor’s generator in the aftermath of Hurricane Milton.
A resident of the 1400 block of West Schwartz Boulevard on the Historic Side of The Villages reported that his generator was shut off at about 11 p.m. Thursday, according to an arrest report from the Lady Lake Police Department.
The Historic Side of The Villages suffered widespread power outages in the wake of the hurricane, and the power outage triggered a sanitary system spill at Lake Paradise.
The Villager was running a generator on his carport when it suddenly shut off. The Villagers restarted the generator, but when it happened a second time, he grabbed a flashlight and looked out the window. He saw 63-year-old Scott Rothkranz of 1417 W. Schwartz Blvd. running from the scene and back to his own home.
The homeowner also noticed two trash cans missing from his home. When police spoke with Rothkranz, the New York native denied taking the trash cans. Rothkranz was instructed to stay off his neighbor’s property. The trash cans were retrieved and returned to their proper place.
A police officer parked near the neighboring residences and waited. The officer saw Rothkranz return to his neighbor’s property and remove the trash cans again.
He was arrested on a charge of trespassing. He was booked at the Lake County Jail and released after posting $1,000 bond.