HOMOSASSA, Fla. — Code enforcement officials in Citrus County demolished a home Tuesday the Sheriff's Office says was a danger and a nuisance to the community.
- Homosassa home destroyed by code enforcement officials
- Residents said there was often drug activity at the home
- More Citrus County headlines
Chalia Thomas said ever since she has lived in her Homosassa neighborhood, the home on Park Drive officials demolished has been a problem.
"Usually about 2, 3 o'clock in the morning you'll find about five, six people out in the yard with flashlights roaming around, cooking drugs, doing drugs," Thomas said.
"It's gotten to the point where I no longer feel safe letting the kids play and that's not fair," she added.
That's why she was glad to see it torn down.
"It's obviously brought down everybody's property value. Nobody can sell right now," she explained.
Code enforcement officials condemned the home after they found it was not safe to live in.
The Sheriff's Office notified code enforcement of the problem, after serving a search warrant there.
"This house here had rats in it. It had cockroaches in it. It was infested with fleas," Sheriff Mike Prendergast said.
In fact, they've received over 40 calls to this house. The home made headlines in 2018 when George Jackson was caught there after deputies serving a search warrant said he pointed a gun at them.
"We knew there was drug activity taking place here. Who knows what else was going on," Prendergast said.
Thomas hopes this demolition is the beginning of a change in her neighborhood.
"There's quite a few more around here that can literally go and they wouldn't be missed," Thomas said.
"Hopefully this is a lesson learned to everybody around here. Stay off the drugs, stay away from it 'cause this could be your home next," she added.
Code enforcement officials say they've demolished about 15 condemned homes in the county so far this year.