HOMESTEAD, Fla. – A Homestead man was arrested Sunday after he helped tear down a fence to a home and urged another man to beat up the homeowner, authorities said.
According to an arrest report, the victim, who lives in the 3600 block of Northeast 4th Street in Homestead, walked to the fence line of his house and asked a group of people not to ride their ATVs behind his house because he has a newborn baby.
Police said a verbal altercation ensued, and additional friends or relatives of the ATV riders also came up to the fence line, threatening to beat up the victim.
Police said Jose Martinez, 45, helped tear down the victim's fence and urged another man in his group, who appeared to be in his early to mid-20s, to jump the fence and attack the victim.
The man hopped the fence and punched the victim on his head, face and body, authorities said.
The victim's mother came outside during the fight, carrying a piece of laminate flooring in an effort to protect her son, but she was pushed to the ground by a woman who was with the ATV riders, the arrest report stated.
Police said the group ran away after the attack, but Martinez and his son, who was not identified, were apprehended outside the front of the victim's house.
The victim identified Martinez as the person who helped tear down his fence and urged the attack. He also identified Martinez's son as being at the scene.
Police said Martinez told officers that he did nothing wrong and urged the officers to look at his hands to see that he was not involved in a fight.
When asked for the name of the person who attacked the victim, Martinez said he didn't know, the arrest report stated.
Police said Martinez also claimed to not know where the attacker went.
He was arrested on charges of burglary with assault or battery and criminal mischief.
Martinez appeared in bond court after his arrest, where Miami-Dade County Judge Mindy Glazer offered him some advice.
"Stay away from there, OK?" she said. "Go find a new place to ride your ATV -- go to the Everglades or something where there's no babies, or people or families, alright?"
Martinez has since been released from jail after posting $8,000 bail.