Bugs, drugs and brawls: Man charged with running problem house

A tenant of a house that became a hotbed for drug sales, fights and theft was arrested Monday, according to the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office.

The house at 510 Albee Farm Road South in Nokomis hasn’t had running water or electricity since Theodore White, 53, and three others have squatted there. Mold, bugs and missing windows and doors have been recorded as the outside is covered in garbage, according to the probable cause affidavit. Sarasota sheriff’s deputies have been called out to the area 93 times since the beginning of the year.

According to an affidavit, in the past three weeks a number of arrests have been made here: a man was hospitalized after being struck in the head with a bike lock during a dispute over drugs and money; a woman was arrested for having a glass pipe; a man was arrested after leaving the house with meth; and another was taken into custody under the Marchman Act after taking drugs and being rushed to the hospital.

A man who told law enforcement he lived at the house for six months said random people come by the house to do drugs on a regular basis.

The house had been subject of Nokomis East HOA complaints earlier this year, according to the affidavit. The actual property owner, who said she abandoned the house, was aware of the situation and knew White was squatting there. According to the affidavit, she refused to maintain the property and doesn’t have the money to go through with the eviction process.

White faces a charge of maintaining a nuisance dwelling and was released Monday on a $10,000 bond. The investigation is ongoing and more charges are pending, according to the sheriff’s office.

This story was originally published May 24, 2017 at 1:30 PM with the headline "Bugs, drugs and brawls: Man charged with running problem house."