Jax Beach police look for man seen peering through woman's window

Man spotted Monday night outside home on 13th Avenue South, police say

JACKSONVILLE BEACH, Fla. – There's a neighborhood crime alert in Jacksonville Beach, where police are asking for the public's help identifying a man they said was seen peering into a window of a woman's home.

According to the Jacksonville Beach Police Department, the woman realized a man was outside her home on 13th Avenue South about 9 p.m. Monday.

The woman who lives in the home, Claire Donnelly, told News4Jax that her security system sent her an alert on her phone and it showed the man on surveillance, prowling in her yard for 30 minutes. 

"I’ve never had someone full-on creeping through my window to see what I was doing and not know what he wanted to do," she said.

Donnelly said she immediately called her boyfriend's father for help since he's her neighbor.

Police said the neighbor saw the man peeping through the woman's window and confronted the man, who claimed he was armed and then ran behind an abandoned house. 

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"It felt good to have someone very close to me that would do that and put themselves out for me like that. It's a good feeling," Donnelly said. 

Neighbors said they were surprised when they saw police at the home.

"We don't have things like this happening here, ever," a neighbor named Lil said. 

On Tuesday, the Police Department released a surveillance image of the man, who was described as being about 6 feet 2 inches tall, weighing about 225 pounds and having close-cropped hair or possibly being bald.

Police said he was last seen wearing only khaki shorts and has several tattoos on his left arm and upper back area.

"I hope he sees all this and turns himself in or someone turns him in because he shouldn't be out there," Donnelly said. “I just really hope that the beaches get cleaned up."

Anyone who recognizes the man pictured is asked to call the Police Department at 904-270-1676 or email tipline@jaxbchfl.net.


About the Authors:

Corley Peel is a Texas native and Texas Tech graduate who covered big stories in Joplin, Missouri, Tulsa, Oklahoma and Jacksonville, Florida before returning to the Lone Star State. When not reporting, Corley enjoys hot yoga, Tech Football, and finding the best tacos in town.