OCALA, Fla. — A Florida man is facing charges after law enforcement said he turned his sprinklers on intentionally as children with special needs got on and off their school bus.
WFTV reported that Antonio Roman was arrested by Marion County deputies, facing several charges, including stalking and battery on disabled victims.
Investigators alleged Roman used security cameras to track the school bus’s arrival and manually turned on his sprinklers twice a day for more than a year, spraying the children.
One father said he wore swimming attire to block his children from the water.
Detectives spoke to a family back in April, who said it had been going on since August 2024 and that one of the alleged victims, both with special needs, was a minor, while the other was an adult, WFLA reported.
Corporal Kyle Ferguson surveilled the home and saw that the sprinklers were directed at the bus stop, turning on as the bus arrived and off when it left, according to WFLA.
Detectives said Roman admitted to being upset about the bus stop, WFTV reported.
“Contact was made with Roman via telephone, who advised that he was upset about the location of the bus stop and did not like that it utilized part of his driveway for the wheelchair ramp one of the victims needed,” the sheriff’s office said, according to NBC News.
An arrest warrant was issued earlier this summer, but he was out of the state at the time. He returned to Marion County over the weekend and contacted the sheriff, turning himself in, NBC News reported.
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