When a pair of travelers were denied entry through a Florida Keys COVID-19 checkpoint, a man allegedly kidnapped a teenager and forced her with threats to drive him and his companion through the policed area.
On the morning of May 21, 37-year-old Alexander Sardinas and a 43-year-old female that was accompanying him allegedly tried to access the Florida Keys, which have been closed to people that are not residents since the outbreak of the novel coronavirus.
The two were reportedly passengers in a ride-share service driver’s vehicle while attempting to make their way through the checkpoint, but the authorities reported that neither of them could provide paperwork or identification, and they were not allowed to enter.
A Highway Patrol officer supplied the pair with a ride to Florida City after Sardinas and the woman learned they would not be able to enter, and they reportedly ended up at a Publix supermarket.
While they were in the market’s parking lot, Sardinas and the woman allegedly approached a teenage female who was driving a vehicle sporting a Hurricane Re-entry sticker.
Sardinas allegedly made threats to harm the girl and ordered her to drive them through the checkpoint.
When the alleged victim provided the necessary paperwork to pass through, she later said she did not feel like it would have been safe for her to inform an officer about the possible danger she might be in.
The teen reportedly took Sardinas to a gas station and let him out of the car, and then continued to a pharmacy in Tavernier, where she reported that she left the woman.
After they were both out of her vehicle, the alleged victim called her family, and the police were notified about the incident.
When a Highway Patrol trooper heard the description of the suspects as they were announced on the police radio, he believed they were the people he drove from the checkpoint earlier.
The authorities quickly found and detained Sardinas, and afterward found the woman they believed was involved.
After the alleged victim said she recognized Sardinas as the person who made the threats against her, he was charged for suspicion of kidnapping/false imprisonment.
Sardinas was booked into the county jail in lieu of a $50,000 bond. He is scheduled for a court hearing on June 6.
If you or someone you love is suspected of a domestic violence offense, contact Orange County criminal defense lawyer Staycie R. Sena at (949) 477-8088 for a consultation now.