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Man wrongly jailed after deputies confuse him for another
A Jacksonville man spent nearly two weeks in jail and missed the birth of his child after deputies mistakenly arrested him in place of a suspect with a similar name, his attorneys said.
ORLANDO, Fla. - A Jacksonville man spent nearly two weeks in jail and missed the birth of his child after deputies mistakenly arrested him in place of a suspect with a similar name, his attorneys said.
The Charges:
According to jail records, on September 12, Samuel Vasquez was arrested in Duval County and charged with assault, burglary, criminal mischief, grand theft and cruelty to animals.Deputies with the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office transported Vasquez to the Duval County Jail where he stayed for four days before being extradited to Polk County.
The Wrong Man:
Vasquez maintained his innocence but ultimately spent 13 days behind bars. He even missed the birth of his child.
Attorneys with the Joshi Law Firm got involved and proved their client was wrongfully arrested.
"An innocent man was arrested; an innocent man went to jail," said Rajan Joshi, Senior Partner at Joshi Law Firm. "In 25 years, I’ve never seen a more sloppy investigation than this – ever!"
According to an incident report from the Polk County Sheriff’s Office, Samuel Vazquez assaulted his ex-girlfriend and her dog outside a Publix in Davenport.
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However, the names are spelled differently. It turns out, deputies with the Jacksonville County Sheriff’s Office arrested the wrong man. Both men have the same name, but one is spelled Vasquez, the other Vazquez.
That’s where the similarities end. Their ages, birthdates, heights and weights are all different.
Samuel Vasquez has no prior arrests or criminal history. According to records, Samuel Vazquez was on probation at the time of the alleged assault.Jonathan Vega, Associate at Joshi Law Firm, said security cameras even caught the alleged crimes outside the grocery store.
"Law enforcement, all they had to do was look – see the face of the real perpetrator and compare it to the person they were pointing the finger at, and they would know that they had the wrong person," Vega said.
According to Vega, he paid a visit to the woman who could right the wrong: the woman who initially made the police report against her alleged attacker."I show[ed] her a photo – the mugshot of my client – and she tells me, I’ve never seen that man before," Vega said.
The Joshi Law Firm then reached out to the Polk County Sheriff’s Office and the District Attorney’s Office.
The Response:
The case of mistaken identity cost Vasquez not only his freedom, but he missed out on the birth of his second child.
We reached out to the District Attorney’s Office, and they replied by sending a ‘no bill’ document. It shows all charges against Samuel Vasquez have now been dropped, and he is free to be released from custody.
According to jail records, the other Vazquez, the one actually accused of committing the crimes, is now behind bars in Charlotte County awaiting extradition to Polk County.
The initial report from the Polk County Sheriff’s Office report has the correct spelling of the actual suspect’s name as well as all the correct identifying details, including his home address.
Samuel Vasquez was wrongly arrested by Jacksonville Sheriff’s Deputies in Duval County. They have not responded to our request for a comment.
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The Source: This story was written based on information shared by attorneys with the Joshi Law Firm, who are representing Samuel Vasquez.