Burglar Breaks into Hotel Room, Then Falls Asleep
When executing a burglary as elaborate as boldly entering a busy hotel and choosing a specific room to rob, it’s best to ensure one has had enough sleep prior to the incident to finish the job. Falling asleep in the middle of it will only spoil the plan.
Yet, 36-year-old Panama City, Florida, resident Jerry Allen Mills Jr. did just this. Mills allegedly broke into a hotel room over the weekend and held its occupant at gunpoint for several hours until he fell asleep and the victim managed to escape.
According to the official police report, Mills knocked on the door of room 206 at a Days Inn and the guest staying in the suite answered. Mills then forced his way into the room and threatened to shoot the man if he tried to get away. The two remained there “for an extended period of time” until Mills evidently fell asleep, leaving the man to easily exit and submit a complaint to the front desk before choosing alternate accommodations.
Upon awakening sometime later, Mills wandered down to the front desk himself where he was confronted by three on-duty clerks who probed him about the purpose of his stay, which incited an argument. Mills pulled out his handgun, pointed it at one of the staff members and pulled the trigger several times yelling “bang!” Luckily, the gun didn’t actually fire.
No stranger to the law, Mills was arrested that evening and has been charged with four counts of aggravated imprisonment, carrying a concealed firearm, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and improper exhibition of a firearm. He already had a warrant out for his arrest for grand theft and has had a total of seven felony convictions in the state of Florida according to a report on his criminal history. Thankfully, no one at the hotel was hurt during the debacle, and as crazy as it sounds, this isn’t even the first time a robber has fallen asleep on the job.
Back in August of this year, Texas native Kanyoni Sedekiya allegedly got into a verbal argument with his roommate during which the man ended up pulling a gun, tying the victim up and demanding his money. Before his roommate could comply, however, Sedekiya dozed off and the victim was able to escape, running straight to a neighbor’s residence to call authorities. Sedekiya was later arrested after surrendering without incident and was charged with aggravated robbery.
Just prior to this incident, during the same month, Erika Levis, 27, and Kristofer Neilson, 29, of Washington were arrested for breaking into a total of 42 storage units using bolt cutters and cleaning them out. Police arrested them after discovering the couple sound sleep in a truck covered by a tarp. Underneath the tarp was all of the couple’s stolen loot.
Lesson learned — load up on the caffeine if planning an all-night crime. Or, even better, just stay in bed. Sometimes truth really is stranger than fiction.
Sources:
Burglar held hotel guest at gunpoint, then dozed off, officers say
Texas Man Arrested After Falling Asleep During Armed Robbery
Cops: Couple faces 42 burglary counts after falling asleep at scene of crime
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