A Eustis woman was arrested after allegedly attacking her roommate of one month while she removed herself from their apartment lease.
Officers responded to the Tanglewood Apartment Homes, located at 2811 Ruleme St., regarding a battery in progress at 12 p.m. Thursday, May 14, according to an arrest report from the Eustis Police Department. Upon arrival, they separated 23-year-old Josey Brianna Neat from her roommate.
Neat appeared disheveled, with a scraped knee, a bite mark on her finger and her hair undone. The roommate looked similar, with her hair also undone and her shirt ripped, exposing one of her breasts. EMS responded to treat both women, the report said.
During the investigation, the assistant property manager and the general property manager advised that they were there to interview Neat and her roommate. The latter had signed a form that removed her from the lease the two shared, the report said.
When the managers arrived, they saw Neat standing outside her vehicle near the office entrance. Her roommate stood a ways down the sidewalk, talking on her cellphone. The roommate came closer, sparking a verbal dispute between her and Neat, the report said.
The managers tried to defuse the situation, but as they entered the office, Neat grabbed her roommate by the hair. She then slung her down to the ground and punched her in the face and head. At that point, the managers contacted law enforcement, the report said.
The roommate later explained that she had been having ongoing issues with Neat since they signed their lease agreement in April. She was meeting at the office for Neat to sign a waiver, releasing her obligations on their shared lease. But Neat refused to leave until June 1 because she had already paid that month’s rent. Neat subsequently attacked her out of nowhere, the report said.
Neat corroborated this account, yet she wanted to press charges against her roommate for biting her finger during the altercation. She admitted hitting her roommate first, as she was on the phone with Neat’s employer to get her fired from her CNA position at Lake Port Square, the report said.
Additionally, two firearms were found in Neat’s vehicle. They were not brandished or removed from the vehicle at any point during the altercation. Both were entered into safekeeping at the EPD until Neat was released and retrieved them, the report said.
Neat was arrested on charge of battery and booked at Lake County Jail. She was released after posting $1,000 bond.
She was also one of two arrested in Jan. 2024 for making a false report about a shooting at a park in Mount Dora.