Arrests made in March 17 apartment office robbery
On Thursday, the Osceola County Sheriff's Office announced three arrests in a March 17 violent robberies at a Kissimmee apartment complex's front office.
Victims inside the Monterosso Apartments office said an unknown masked male, later identified as Ildemaro Escalona-Mendoza, 26, had entered the front office, brandished a firearm, and removed cash and a wallet from one of the victims’ pockets.
Two other suspects who utilized the victim's credit cards, Samuel Anthony-Charle, 25, and Renzo Mendoza-Rico, 34. Escalona-Mendoza was arrested and charged with robbery with a firearm, two counts of aggravated assault with intent to commit a felony and grand theft. Anthony-Charle and Mendoza-Rico were arrested and charged with use or possession of another's identification without consent and credit card fraud.
Two Kissimmee men arrested in separate child pornography investigations
Osceola County Sheriff’s deputies have arrested two Kissimmee men in separate child pornography investigations, one of whom is a convicted sex offender accused of violating his probation by failing to report online accounts, while the other was taken into custody following a sixth tip from a national child exploitation reporting system.
On March 7, authorities conducted an unannounced probation search at the South Emory Avenue home of Orlando Bota, 37, a convicted sex offender from Puerto Rico. He is required to register twice annually and report all internet activity. However, during the search, probation officers discovered multiple unreported email addresses and online accounts on his phone. A forensic analysis later confirmed the existence of these undisclosed accounts, as well as numerous images depicting child sexual abuse and bestiality.
Bota, who was already serving a one-year probation sentence for a drug-related offense, now faces nine counts of possession of child pornography, two counts of possessing images depicting sexual activity involving animals, and failure to comply with sex offender registration laws.
In a separate case, Isaiah Rafael Nunez, 19, was arrested following a September 2024 investigation prompted by a sixth report submitted to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children’s (NCMEC) CyberTipline. The report provided an IP address, email and Kik messaging account linked to Nunez, who had allegedly uploaded three images of child sexual abuse in July 2024.
Authorities say Nunez has a history with the CyberTipline dating back to 2022 when, at age 16, he was flagged in five separate reports for suspected involvement in child exploitation. Although a sheriff’s detective conducted an "internet safety talk" with him after an image was found in 2022, no charges were filed at the time. A subsequent investigation in August 2022 also failed to yield further illicit material, and the case was closed.
However, chat logs from Nunez’s Kik account obtained through a search warrant in December 2024 reportedly show him soliciting child pornography from other users. He now faces three counts of possession of child sexual abuse material, one count of soliciting a minor, and one count of unlawful use of a two-way communication device.
Orlando man arrested in Kissimmee on drug charges
A 34-year-old man with a history of drug charges was arrested Tuesday in Kissimmee on a felony burglary warrant and found in possession of fentanyl and methamphetamine.
Javaris Lamonte Florestial, who was wanted by the Kissimmee Police Department on a burglary charge, was spotted shopping inside a Dollar Tree on Old Vineland Road. Members of the Osceola County Sheriff’s Office Violent Crime Unit, K-9 Unit, and Patrol Division surrounded the store while an undercover deputy kept him under surveillance.
As Florestial exited the store, a deputy identified himself and ordered him to stop. Instead, Florestial fled on foot toward West U.S. Highway 192. After a short pursuit, Florestial was taken into custody. A search of Florestial revealed about 14 grams of methamphetamine and 12 grams of fentanyl, along with small clear baggies and $864 in cash, authorities said.
Florestial was charged with trafficking in fentanyl and methamphetamine, possession of drug paraphernalia and resisting arrest without violence. After receiving medical clearance at Advent Health Celebration, he was booked into the Osceola County Jail.
Court records show Florestial has a lengthy criminal history dating back to 2012, including attempted murder and multiple drug-related offenses.
