Man arrested for child molestation faces new charges stemming from armed robbery attempt that left 32-year-old dead: JSO

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A 45-year-old man who was previously arrested for child molestation is now facing new charges after police connected him to an armed robbery attempt that left a 32-year-old man dead, according to the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office.

JSO said Damon Thomas was re-arrested on Wednesday afternoon and continues to be held in Duval County Jail as he awaits sentencing for his crimes.

Police say that Thomas’s armed robbery attempt occurred on Nov. 3 at a business on Baymeadows Road.

When officers arrived at the scene, they found Rhoderius Simmons with a gunshot wound in the business’s parking lot.

Police later learned that he and Thomas attempted to rob the owner, and after an exchange of gunfire, Simmons was left in the parking lot, where he later died, while Thomas drove away.