Wanted Florida man tried to throw cops off with ‘I don’t live here sign’
A Florida man wanted by the cops tried to throw them off his trail by placing a big sign outside his house, reading: “Johnny Yates does NOT live here!!”
It didn’t work.
Yates, 41, who was wanted by the Polk County Sheriff’s Office on aggravated battery, false imprisonment and tampering charges, was eventually locked up.
Deputies showed up at Yates’ Lakeland home at around 2:45 p.m. on Saturday after getting a tip that he was holed up inside, the sheriff’s office said on Facebook.
“When the deputies arrived they noticed a note written on a dry-erase board in front of a window that said, ‘Johnny Yates does NOT live here!!'” the post said. “Gee…a dry-erase board never lied to us before—should we believe it?”
The deputies questioned someone leaving the house, who confirmed that Yates was inside — but after surrounding the house for an hour and calling for the fugitive to come out, cops had to take it to the next level, the office said.
“Enough was enough, and the ‘Surrender Smoke’ was dispensed inside the house, and four people exited the home, but no Johnny,” the sheriff’s office said.
“Deputies called out some more, but still no response from Johnny, so a second helping of ‘Surrender Smoke’ was put inside the home to waft around a bit.”
“Yet still, no response from Johnny,” the post said. “Finally, deputies and K-9 Dexter entered the house and located Johnny, who was hiding in a modified chest of drawers.
“Johnny was arrested and taken to jail.”
The office said the four people who were initially holed up in the house with Yates were also dealt with.
“In regards to the four people who weren’t cooperating with deputies, each one received a parting gift: a charge of resisting and an all-expense paid trip to Grady Judd’s Bed & Breakfast.”
Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd, that is.
