The girlfriend of a fugitive was taken into custody Monday afternoon by U.S. Marshals and Lake County sheriff’s deputies.
Law enforcement have been searching for Zachery Maurice Waldo since he failed to return from lunch to the Lake County Court house where he was on trial for DUI-manslaughter. Waldo’s girlfriend, 32-year-old Melinesia Shauntel Jones of Leesburg, was taken into custody by the U.S. Marshal’s Office and sheriff’s deputies on a Lake County warrant. She was arrested during a traffic stop on Vine Street in Leesburg on a warrant that charges her with principal to failure to appear, accessory after the fact to DUI manslaughter, providing false information to law enforcement in a felony investigation, and accessory after the fact to DUI with serious bodily injury. The related affidavit used to obtain the warrant on Jones has been sealed by a judge; therefore, no additional details are available.
She was being held without bond at the Lake County Jail.
Waldo was convicted of DUI manslaughter and other charges by a jury. Waldo was intoxicated when he crashed the 2019 Dodge Ram truck he was driving into a Toyota car driven by 44-year-old Christopher Smith on Christmas Eve 2019. Both Christopher, his wife, 35-year-old Jessica Smith and their 13-year-old daughter were killed. Their 11-year-old son was severely injured.
A reward of $10,000 is being offered for information leading to Waldo’s arrest–$5,000 from Central Florida CRIMELINE and $5,000 from the Florida Sheriff’s Association Criminal Apprehension Assistance Program. In order to be eligible for the reward, tipsters must provide their information through CRIMELINE at 1-800-423-TIPS, where they can remain completely anonymous.
