A photograph capturing a suspect’s distinct facial tattoos helped deputies track down a Jacksonville motorcyclist accused of a violent attack following a crash on Interstate 75 in Wildwood.
The incident began at about 4 p.m. June 10 when a driver traveling southbound near mile marker 330 moved into the center lane to avoid a merging semi-truck. In doing so, the driver’s vehicle collided with a motorcycle.
The driver pulled over and rolled down his window to check on the injured motorcyclist. At that point, a second motorcyclist—later identified as 35-year-old Jacob Andrew Tolen—approached the vehicle. According to the warrant affidavit from the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office, Tolen became confrontational, yelled racial slurs, reached through the driver’s window, grabbed the man by his shirt, and punched him in the chest.
The attack tore the driver’s shirt. Tolen then returned to his motorcycle and fled south on I-75 before law enforcement arrived.
Though the victim was unable to get a license plate number, he managed to snap a photograph of his attacker, capturing the man’s black biker vest and highly visible face and head tattoos.
Those tattoos proved to be his undoing. Deputies used the photograph to identify Tolen and then turned to license plate readers and traffic cameras to solidify their case. Cameras had captured Tolen riding alongside the injured motorcyclist earlier that day near the Hart Bridge in Duval County. Another camera caught Tolen the following day riding on Interstate 4 in Polk County, which gave deputies a clear image of his license plate.
Tolen is facing a felony charge of burglary of a conveyance with battery. Tolen was booked at the Sumter County Detention Center and released after posting $25,000 bond.