A home on Laurel Road E in Venice became the scene of a violent invasion late on the night of Sept. 23, according to a probable-cause affidavit filed in the case. Two men from Texas, Justin Anthony Mitchell and Brevaun Williams, both 34, have been arrested in connection with the break-in. The affidavit alleges that the homeowner was zip-tied, tased, and pepper-sprayed while the suspects demanded she open safes inside the house.
According to court records, the homeowner received a security alert and locked herself in a bathroom with a revolver before the suspects forced their way in and took her to an office. She managed to call a family member, Richard Lanigan Jr., and told him not to come down the hall because the intruders would kill him. Lanigan came anyway, and the affidavit alleges that one of the suspects grabbed the homeowner’s revolver and fired a shot toward him before the two men fled. Detectives later documented forced-entry damage, cut zip ties, a spent Taser cartridge, and a projectile hole in a closet door.
Williams reportedly told investigators that he and Mitchell traveled to Venice after someone named “Rico” claimed the home contained cash and gold stored in safes. That detail has raised questions about who might have shared information about the property, and it’s a reminder for Suncoast residents to be careful about who knows what’s inside their homes.
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