Counting 'em Down: For better or for worse, this is the Headline Surfer countdown of 2021's Top 100 biggest news stories of Central Florida along the tourism-driven stretch of Interstate 4 (Orlando Attractions and east to I-95 & the World's Most Famous Beach in Daytona). Each recap segment is posted with its own headline, culminating with the unveiling of No. 1, before switching to the Top 5 storylines -- the good, the bad & the ugly on the horizon in "2022: The Year That Lies Ahead."
By HENRY FREDERICK / Headline Surfer
DELTONA, Fla. -- Deputies monitoring a Deltona neighborhood for a prowler who exposed himself to a woman the week before peeping into the same victim's bedroom window said they caught him with his pants to his knees on the night of Aug. 22 and he appeared to be masturbating.
The reaction from one of the deputies was immediate: "Dude, he had his pants down - his ass towards me!"
The reaction from one of the deputies was immediate: "Dude, he had his pants down - his ass towards me!"
The deputy was among several with the Deltona Crime Suppression Team who gave chase to Francisco Javier Orozco Gutierrez, 37 who tried to run off but had trouble pulling up his shorts and didn't get more than a few feet before he was tackled and cuffed while on his belly.
The Deltona resident was arrested just around the corner of the home on Dunlap Drive - the same residence where the woman saw him expose himself to her four nights earlier.
Deputies had been working on the case since the previous Monday's report of a suspect knocking on the victim’s bedroom window, then exposing himself to her at her sliding glass door. The Sheriff’s Office posted a public safety alert about the incident and detectives canvassed the area, spoke to neighbors, and researched sex offenders living in the area, but none matched the description given by the victim herself who saw him up close and personal
Another resident on nearby Lavilla Street reported someone knocking at the front door. At the scene, deputies found a shoe print that appeared to match a Nike sneaker worn by the accused.
A week before the arrest, deputies responded again to the victim’s home on Dunlap Drive after she reported someone knocking loudly on her rear sliding glass door for several minutes. She was too afraid to look out her windows. A deputy on his way to the scene encountered Orozco on Dunlap Drive, wearing all black athletic clothing and black Nike shoes. Orozco said he’d been working all day and was out for a walk to get some exercise. He became a person of interest in the case.
Deltona CST deputies conducted covert surveillance on the victim’s home tw nigjhts in a row and on the latter night, 8:45 p.m., they spotted a man peeking inside the window. They watched him transition to another window, then crouch outside of it while looking inside.
A deputy noted the suspect had his pants down around his knees, and that his hands were occupied in front of him. The suspect stood up and ran away when challenged, but was apprehended by another deputy seconds later.
Orozco Gutierrez was charged with indecent exposure, voyeurism, stalking, loitering or prowling, and possession of drug paraphernalia after deputies found a crack pipe in the immediate area where he was taken into custody.
He was transported to the Volusia County Jail in Daytona Beach where he remained held for several days before making bail.
Criminal Case Update:
Francisco Javier Orozco Gutierrez had a pre-trial earlier this month, but a trial has yet to be scheduled before Volusia County Judge Belle Schumann. He is represented by private defense attorney Lee Taylor Mercado of New Smyrna Beach. If convicted of stalking and the other related charges, he could get up to a year in jail.
Multimedia: Prowling suspect arrested
YouTube embedding / VCSO bodycam footage / Delton prowling suspect caught with his pants down ouytside a Deltona residence is arrested.
About the Byline Writer: Henry Frederick is a member of the working press and publisher of Headline Surfer, the award-winning 24/7 internet news outlet launched in 2008, that serves greater Daytona Beach, Sanford & Orlando from Lake Mary, Florida via HeadlineSurfer.com. Frederick has amassed close to 150 award-winning bylines in print & online. He earned his Master of Arts in New Media Journalism from Full Sail University in 2019. He was a breaking news reporter (metro cops & courts beat) for the Daytona Beach News-Journal for nearly a decade. And Before that worked the same beat for The Journal-News/Gannett Suburban Newspapers in Rockland/Westchester counties, NY, dating back to 1989. Having witnessed the execution of serial killer Aileen Wuornos in Florida's death chamber and covering other high profile cases, Frederick has appeared on national crime documentary shows on Discovery ID, Reelz, and the Oxygen Network series "Snapped" for his analysis. • Award-Winning Journalism: Florida Press Club recognizes Headline Surfer for nine stories in 2020 statewide competition. • Award-Winning Journalism of Henry Frederick.