TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) — A newly released arrest report details how the suspect accused of setting fire to a Taco Bell employee Wednesday was taken into custody at gunpoint.
According to a newly released arrest report, Tallahassee Police were called to the Taco Bell restaurant on South Monroe Street Wednesday after Mia Williams had allegedly thrown a flammable liquid on an employee and set them on fire. Williams then ran away.
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"Williams was described as a bearded, black male, thin build, and he was last observed wearing a red turban," the report reads. "Williams was known to be homeless and was not known to have a car." However, TPD says Williams "identifies as a black female."
Hours after the search began for Williams, documents say a car fire was reported at Walcott Street around 5 a.m. Around 20 minutes later, two fires were reported, one at a home on Lake Avenue where two cars had been set on fire and another Hillsborough Street where a church was engulfed in flames.
Documents say it was "apparent" both fires were a result of arson. Williams was deemed "extremely dangerous" according to the report.
A little while later, two more fires were reported off Paul Dirac Drive involving a dumpster and a car.
"All the fires were in relatively close proximity to one another," documents read. "The fires were not within quick walking distance, but a suspect on a bicycle could easily have been at each location."
Around 6:40 a.m., officers learned that Williams was spotted by a Tallahassee Fire Department unit riding a bicycle on Mabry Street toward West Pensacola Street.
Officers converged on the area where they found Williams riding in front of the fire truck. An officer got out of the car and called out to Williams, who turned and looked at the officer.
The officer told Williams to stop, but she began pedaling quickly away, going east down West Pensacola Street. The officer followed in a patrol car, activating emergency lights and sirens.
Again, the officer told WIlliams to stop but she pedaled past.
The report stated that the officer knew he was dealing with a "dangerous individual who had attempted to murder an innocent individual, and had likely set multiple fires," so he got out his taser and fired two shots that were "ineffective."
As Williams passed the Village Apartments on the sidewalk, the officer hopped the curb with his patrol car and pinned the front tire of Williams' bicycle to the fence. Williams, who wasn't hurt, immediately jumped from his bicycle to the roof of my patrol car.
"Williams perched on my roof and withdrew a pair of orange handled scissors. Williams brandished the scissors like a knife and raised them up, as if to potentially stab me," the officer wrote in the report.
That's when the officer pulled out his gun and pointed it at Williams while telling her to stop. Another officer arrived and both told Williams to get off the roof of the car.
Eventually, documents say Williams climbed down, and officers took her to the ground where she continued to fight against them, pulling away and attempting to tuck her arms under her body. Williams was ultimately placed in handcuffs.
When they searched her, they found a cigarette lighter in her left front pocket and assorted personal items in her backpack.
Based on the evidence, Williams was charged with attempted first degree murder, resisting arrest with violence and aggravated assault. She has not been charged for the fires.
The victim is still being treated at a hospital and remains in serious condition. TPD’s Victim Advocate Unit is assisting the victim’s family.
Williams was in court for a first appearance Friday. A judge ordered that she be held without bond and is barred from having contact with Taco Bell employees or the victim.
Although an arrest has been made, this case remains an active investigation due to the surrounding circumstances with additional charges pending. TPD’s Violent Crimes Investigators are asking anyone with information about this case to please call them at (850) 891-4200 or Crime Stoppers at (850) 574-TIPS.
