ST. PETERSBURG, FL — A St. Petersburg man faces multiple felony charges after breaking into a luxury downtown apartment building and holding a resident against her will Sunday afternoon, police records show.
William Roundtree, 43, was charged with burglary of an unoccupied dwelling, armed burglary, battery and false imprisonment, according to St. Petersburg police arrest affidavits.
He broke into at least two apartments at the Beacon 430 at 430 Third Ave. South, stealing jewelry from a third-floor unit and drinking beverages belonging to the woman who lives there, police records show. The intruder’s clothing, wallet and Florida ID were found in her bathroom.
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Roundtree also broke into a fourth-floor apartment in the building while a second victim, who lived in that unit, was away. He was either armed with or he picked up a butcher knife and a steak knife, police said.
When the victim returned home, Roundtree came out of the bathroom and confronted her with a knife, according to arrest records.
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As she tried to escape, Roundtree grabbed her from behind, threw her to the ground and pinned her down, police said. The woman had a bruise on her left arm and a scratch across the right side of her forehead.
Roundtree held the woman captive in her apartment for about an hour before she was able to escape, the department said.
Police were called and Roundtree was found in the victim’s apartment, where he was taken into custody.
Steve Marotta, a resident of the building, told Patch the victim came to him for assistance after breaking free from the suspect.
He called 911 with the victim, who he says is a Stetson University law student, and armed himself in case Roundtree came to his apartment.
“This individual was in her apartment, had eaten her food in there and ransacked the place,” Marotta said. “When she came home, she was in the shower and he held her against her will in there for an hour, attacking her, choking her.”
The woman was able to get away after biting Roundtree’s finger, causing him to bleed, her neighbor said.
“I heard banging on the door…to my shock, it was this terrified young lady, shaking, trembling, blood on her. I didn’t know what’s going on. She said, ‘Help me. He’s going to kill me. Help me please,’” Marotta said. “I’ve never seen a woman so terrified in my life.”
He added that “her throat…was bruised up and her arm was bruised up.”
Another resident, a woman who asked to remain anonymous, told Patch that someone tried to break into her fourth-floor apartment early Saturday around 3 a.m.
While she didn’t see the suspect, “I heard my door. Somebody tried to open my door and pushed very hard. It sounded like they tried to use a screwdriver or something to open the door.”
She was fearful, then her dog barked and whoever was at her door left, she said.
The resident said she’s often worried about security in the building, as she’s frequently found the garage door open. Now, after the recent break-in and attack on a resident, “I’m very scared,” she said.
So scared that she plans to move out of the building soon, before her lease is up, though she’s only lived there for about eight months.
“I want to move out. I’m scared at nights. I’m so scared here,” she said. “A lot of people, they travel on weekends and leave. The building’s kind of empty. You never see too many people, and I hate being alone in the elevator when I walk my dog, especially after this.”
Another resident, who also asked to remain anonymous, said she frequently takes her dogs on walks and hasn’t noticed much security.
“Management is slow on the uptake on this,” she told Patch. “I’ve found doors open eight times so far this week. No security monitoring and I walk my dog about six times a day, so I would have observed something.”
Marotta is also frustrated by security at the Beacon 430, noting that he often finds garage doors unlocked.
“Anybody could walk in and carte blanche to whatever apartment,” he said. “We have a false sense of security. We’re not safe here.”
Patch has reached out to the apartment building’s management for comment, and will update this story with any response.
In an email sent to the building’s residents on Monday, provided to Patch by a resident, staff wrote, “As you may have heard, an incident occurred this past weekend when a non-resident entered the building and gained access to (two) apartments. There was no evidence of forced entry to either home. It is still alarming that an intruder would have been able to gain access. This is the first time an occurrence like this has happened at Beacon 430. The local authorities were contacted, and security footage has been provided. The authorities are investigating the incident.”
Beacon 430 staff added, “We were informed that the suspect potentially gained access to the building as a resident may have been entering or exiting the building. During the next week our team will be working with a couple outside vendors to review the building’s access points to ensure each door is operating properly.”
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