Police arrest man in weekend street attack

BROOKSVILLE - A 40-year-old Brooksville man was arrested Saturday after he was accused of attacking a woman in a wooded area early that morning, police said.

Brooksville Detective Eddie McConnell said that the victim, whose name is being withheld by the St. Petersburg Times due to the nature of the allegations, was walking from the Speedway gas station on Broad Street early Saturday morning when she was grabbed in a wooded area near the intersection with Lamar Avenue.

The attacker then threw her to the ground and tried to pull her pants down, a police report stated. Authorities said the attack was interrupted by a passerby, who heard the victim's cries for help.

A police officer who was also in the area responded to the screams and found Leonard L. Jones, sweaty and dirty, leaving the woods, the report said. Jones, of S Lemon Street, and the victim knew each other, police said.

He was taken into custody and charged with one count of kidnapping.

Jones, who is employed as a sign maker, was also charged in an Oct. 6 robbery, in which a man's wallet and cell phone were stolen. He was being held at Hernando County Jail on $40,000 bail.

Past 14 Days March 16, 2008 March 15, 2008 March 14, 2008 March 13, 2008 March 12, 2008 March 11, 2008 March 10, 2008 March 9, 2008 March 8, 2008 March 7, 2008 March 6, 2008 March 5, 2008 March 4, 2008 March 3, 2008 Search further back

© 2006 • All Rights Reserved • St. Petersburg Times 490 First Avenue South • St. Petersburg, FL 33701 • 727-893-8111 Contact the Times | Privacy Policy Standard of Accuracy | Terms, Conditions & Copyright