Detective Tiffany Barry with the Citrus County Sheriff’s Office’s (CCSO) High Tech Crimes Unit today arrested 39-year-old Daniel Ballagas of Homosassa on charges of Burglary of an Occupied Dwelling and Exposure of Sexual Organs.
On Sept. 23, the CCSO received a call that an unknown male, later identified as Ballagas, had entered a residence where the juvenile victim was home alone and is said to have exposed himself to the victim.
The victim called her mother and told her that a man had just come into the house, entered her bedroom and exposed himself. Deputies arrived on the scene, verified the male was not in the residence, and began searching the local area based on the description provided by the victim.
The victim was able to provide a description of Ballagas, and the mother said she had seen a male matching that description traveling away from the residence while returning home. Detective Barry was assigned the case, and after a lengthy investigation, she was able to develop the identity of the suspect as being Ballagas.
Through a photo lineup, the victim was able to positively identify Ballagas as the male who had entered her house. The mother also confirmed he was the male she had seen on the roadway near the residence.
Today, Detective Barry interviewed Ballagas at the Citrus County Detention Facility where he was incarcerated on unrelated charges. While speaking to Detective Barry, Ballagas made statements confirming that he had entered the victim’s residence, and while on the property, he admitted he spoke to a female in the bedroom.
“Ballagas stole the sense of safety from this victim by entering her family home. He also exposed himself to her, putting her through an experience that a child should not have had to endure,” said Sheriff Mike Prendergast.
“Due to the tenacity displayed by Detective Barry, we were able to intervene before Ballagas escalated his behavior, leaving Citrus County a safer community with him in custody,” the sheriff said.
Ballagas was arrested and charged with one count of Burglary to an Occupied Dwelling and one count of Exposure of Sexual Organs. Although his bond was set at $16,000.00 total for both counts per the bond schedule, he is currently being held with no bond reference the unrelated charges.
