Homeowner wakes up to flare shot through bedroom window

BROOKSVILLE (FOX 13) - An 18-year-old is accused of shooting a flare gun through the bedroom window of a homeowner. 

Brooksville police say the victim woke up to a loud bang around 4:30 a.m. Friday. There was a hole in the window above his bed and he smelled something burning. 

Police say the broken window and smoky smell were caused by a flare which was shot by Jachob T. Hollenbeck, who lives in Spring Hill but was apparently visiting someone in Brooksville at the time.

"It scared the hell out of me, obviously," Steve Diez told FOX 13 News. "I didn't know what it was and then I think I see. I get out of my bed and I think I see a hole in my window."

Diez's girlfriend told police she saw a purple car driving through the neighborhood around the time it happened. Officers tracked Hollenbeck down shortly afterward near the intersection of S. Mildred Avenue and MLK Blvd. He and two others in the vehicle were interviewed and it came out that Hollenbeck had shot the flare, according to police. 

"This is somebody that has a screw loose," Brooksville Police Chief George Turner said.

Hollenbeck now faces a charge of shooting or throwing a deadly missile. He was taken to the Hernando County Jail and held on $10,000 bond.

"If this had been a vacant house [or] no one had been home, it could have obviously ignited the whole building [and] seriously injured someone," Diez pointed out. "Could have caused a lot of damage. Could have been a whole lot worse."