Do you know where Matthew Wayne Keel is? If so, it's time to speak up and turn him in!

If you remember the disturbing scene that was uncovered at the home on NW 6th St with dogs living in deplorable conditions, this is the person responsible and he has run away instead of facing up to his crimes.

Matthew is wanted on a felony warrant for 23 counts of Aggravated Animal Cruelty and 19 counts of Animal Cruelty.

On Feb. 1, 2024, Marion County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) and Marion County Animal Services found 53 dogs living in deplorable conditions, with one dog found deceased and others in dire need of medical attention. Deceased dogs were even discovered in the freezer.  MCSO Agricultural Detective Burgess was able to obtain a warrant for Keel’s arrest, but they have been unable to locate him and he may have left the state.

 

These innocent animals deserve justice, and Keel needs to be held accountable for his actions. If you have any information on his whereabouts, please call MCSO at 352-732-9111. You can also provide anonymous tips to Crime Stoppers of Marion County at 352-368-STOP, referencing 24-12 in your tip.

 

Squatting Scam Now Criminal in Florida

 

Are you going on vacation? Maybe taking a week or two to visit family out of state. Awesome! Sounds like fun! But what happens when you get back to your home, you are tired from traveling and thinking about the stuff you need to do tomorrow. When you pull up to your home, you notice there are different lights on, some of the windows are open and you get scared!

Someone has broken into your home! You immediately call the police! The police show up, and there are people actually living in your home! You have never seen them before in your life! They are not only going through your belongings and using them, but as you peek into the house since they won’t let you or the police in, you see that they are trashing your house! There’s food and dogs and cats everywhere!

Then the people show a signed lease to the sheriff with your name on it as a landlord. It’s not your signature, and supposedly you signed it while you were across the country! The sheriff tells you there is nothing they can do, you have to file an eviction! The squatter gets to stay there for free, trashing your home daily as you wait for the court process. Come to find out, they are pros at this scam and already have a dozen evictions! They delay the inevitable eviction for months through the systematic manipulation of the court system so that they can continue to live on your dime while also selling your possessions and appliances on websites like Facebook marketplace and Ebay.

When you eventually get the eviction after thousands of dollars in court costs and attorney fees, there is tens of thousands of dollars in damages to your home. The squatter is long gone and even though you have a judgment against them, they don’t have a job or wages to garnish.

 

This would never happen right? It can’t happen, that’s not fair or right.

It happens all the time. I have personally seen this happen right here in Ocala, especially on vacant homes for sale. In some States, it is incredibly easy to do and can take up to a year to get through the eviction process as there are laws protecting ‘Squatters Rights’ which supersede the rights of the homeowner.

 

 On March 27th, Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the "Property Rights" bill (HB 621), which seeks to provide homeowners remedies against squatting and increases penalties on squatters.

 

“We are putting an end to the squatters scam in Florida,” DeSantis said in an announcement.

 

"You are not going to be able to commandeer somebody's private property and expect to get away with it. In the state of Florida, we are ending the squatter scam once and for all."

 

House Bill 621 authorizes property owners to request action by the sheriff's office to immediately remove unauthorized persons from your home, according to the bill analysis.

 

With a simple form, the sheriff's offices can assist to keep the peace while the property owner or agent of the owner changes the locks and removes the personal property of the unlawful occupants from the premises out to the curb.

 

According the bill, it will create severe criminal penalties for violators, including:

 

A first-degree misdemeanor for making a fraudulent lease.

 

A second-degree felony for unlawfully occupying or trespassing in a residential dwelling and intentionally causes $1,000 or more in damages.

 

And a first-degree felony for advertising the sale or rent of a residential property without legal authority or ownership. To clarify, an example of a first degree felony is battery on a law enforcement officer. So in Florida, as of March 27th, running a rental scam on Facebook Marketplace could get you up to 30 years in prison. For the many families that have had their identities stolen by fake applications and thousands of dollars taken from this type of fraud…I don’t think they will lose any sleep over this severe penalty.

 

These criminal charges will potentially end the squatter/scammer cycle if the sheriff is able to see the prior criminal charges for past squatter offenses.

 

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