A man is accused of breaking into two homes while armed with a knife before one homeowner restrained him until police arrived. The Port St Lucie Police Department arrested 44-year-old Clarence Orange following two separate home break-ins. The incidents happened last week at the 2000 block of SW Marblehead Way in Port St Lucie. According to Master Sgt. Dominick Mesiti, the first 911 call came from a woman who had run to a neighbor’s house to call for help. “The first home he ran into, he made entry through the open overhead garage door. An adult female was actually in the garage. They made eye contact. He stared at her for a minute and then continued running into the house. Four other family members were inside the home. No one was harmed,” he said. Mesiti said by the time they got the first 911 call, Orange had run to a home across the street where the homeowner was outside mowing the lawn. Home security video shows the moments the homeowner spotted him and began yelling at him. ” actually saw the gentleman running inside the garage, and immediately gave pursuit inside. The suspect had made it into the laundry room through the interior garage door, where a pregnant adult female was. She immediately ran upstairs,” Mesiti said. The homeowner who had chased Orange was able to take the knife from him and restrain him in the laundry room until police arrived. “The victims were extremely scared, extremely upset, didn’t know what was happening, didn’t realize he was in crisis. So they were in fear for their lives, and justifiably so,” he told WPBF. Mesiti said Orange appeared to be going through some sort of mental health crisis and believed someone was trying to kill him. At this time, officials do not believe he had any intentions to hurt the occupants of the homes he’s accused of breaking into. However, with Orange being armed with a knife and Florida’s “Stand Your Ground” Law, Mesiti said they’re thankful no one was hurt. “Almost every type of incident where somebody unlawfully enters the home of another could potentially end up in a bad situation. We do have a stand your ground law. We do have the castle doctrine in Florida. Both homeowners and parties inside those homes would have been justified in using necessary force to eliminate the threat, not knowing what that threat was,” he added. Orange was arrested and booked into the St. Lucie County jail. He’s facing two counts of armed trespassing and two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. Previous incidentAccording to court records, Orange is accused of doing something very similar in Palm Beach County just a few months prior. In June of 2025, Orange was arrested following a call for a burglary in progress. The probable cause statement shows that a woman was outside her home with her two kids when she heard a man, later identified as Clarence Orange, screaming in the street. Your neighborhood: Local coverage from WPBF 25 NewsAccording to court records, the woman said she tried going inside her home, but before she could shut and lock the door, Orange pushed past her. Once inside her home, she told officers Orange started screaming for someone to call 911, and that someone was chasing him. The victim ran to the complex’s clubhouse nearby with her two children while waiting for law enforcement to arrive. The probable cause statement notes that Orange is a habitual mental health patient who takes drugs and hallucinates, oftentimes thinking he sees someone or something that is not actually there. Deputies reportedly tried getting Orange to come out of the home, which they say he initially refused, until he opened the door and charged full speed at them. Officials deployed a taser, striking Orange, who was eventually taken into custody. He was charged with burglary with a battery and resisting an officer without violence. A warning from officialsMesiti said these incidents are a good reminder for residents to be alert and lock their doors. “Even though Port St. Lucie is still one of the safest cities in the state of Florida, one of the safest in the nation, don’t be complacent. Yes, one gentleman was mowing his yard. Most people, if you’re mowing your own yard, you do leave your garage door open, but maybe lock the interior garage door if you’re there to prevent these kinds of things from happening,” he said.He said these types of incidents can happen anywhere. “That’s what people need to understand, especially when you’re dealing with people in crisis, they might not even be aware of what they’re doing at times, not saying that was the case in this case, but it can happen anywhere. So it would be prudent to secure your home, even when you are home, and lock your doors. It’s just safe,” he added. Mesiti also said officers with the PSLPD are trained to handle calls where a person is dealing with a mental health crisis. If no crime is committed, he said, they use their de-escalation policy, where they offer their services but eventually remove themselves from the area to avoid provoking or escalating the situation. Get the latest news updates with the WPBF 25 News app. You can download it here.”In a different situation, such as this, where a crime, a felony crime, is committed and other people are potentially in harm’s way, then we do have the duty to act and do what we need to do. Luckily, we were able to take him into custody without incident without the use of force,” he told WPBF.Top Headlines:Deadly shooting investigation underway in West Palm Beach
PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. —
A man is accused of breaking into two homes while armed with a knife before one homeowner restrained him until police arrived.
The Port St Lucie Police Department arrested 44-year-old Clarence Orange following two separate home break-ins. The incidents happened last week at the 2000 block of SW Marblehead Way in Port St Lucie.
According to Master Sgt. Dominick Mesiti, the first 911 call came from a woman who had run to a neighbor’s house to call for help.
Hearst OwnedPort St Lucie Police Department
Clarence Orange, 44, was booked in the St Lucie County Jail.
“The first home he ran into, he made entry through the open overhead garage door. An adult female was actually in the garage. They made eye contact. He stared at her for a minute and then continued running into the house. Four other family members were inside the home. No one was harmed,” he said.
Mesiti said by the time they got the first 911 call, Orange had run to a home across the street where the homeowner was outside mowing the lawn. Home security video shows the moments the homeowner spotted him and began yelling at him.
Hearst OwnedPort St Lucie Police Department
“[He] actually saw the gentleman running inside the garage, and immediately gave pursuit inside. The suspect had made it into the laundry room through the interior garage door, where a pregnant adult female was. She immediately ran upstairs,” Mesiti said.
The homeowner who had chased Orange was able to take the knife from him and restrain him in the laundry room until police arrived.
“The victims were extremely scared, extremely upset, didn’t know what was happening, didn’t realize he was in crisis. So they were in fear for their lives, and justifiably so,” he told WPBF.
Mesiti said Orange appeared to be going through some sort of mental health crisis and believed someone was trying to kill him. At this time, officials do not believe he had any intentions to hurt the occupants of the homes he’s accused of breaking into.
However, with Orange being armed with a knife and Florida’s “Stand Your Ground” Law, Mesiti said they’re thankful no one was hurt.
“Almost every type of incident where somebody unlawfully enters the home of another could potentially end up in a bad situation. We do have a stand your ground law. We do have the castle doctrine in Florida. Both homeowners and parties inside those homes would have been justified in using necessary force to eliminate the threat, not knowing what that threat was,” he added.
Hearst OwnedPort St Lucie Police Department
Orange was arrested and booked into the St. Lucie County jail. He’s facing two counts of armed trespassing and two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
Previous incident
According to court records, Orange is accused of doing something very similar in Palm Beach County just a few months prior.
In June of 2025, Orange was arrested following a call for a burglary in progress. The probable cause statement shows that a woman was outside her home with her two kids when she heard a man, later identified as Clarence Orange, screaming in the street.
Your neighborhood: Local coverage from WPBF 25 News
According to court records, the woman said she tried going inside her home, but before she could shut and lock the door, Orange pushed past her. Once inside her home, she told officers Orange started screaming for someone to call 911, and that someone was chasing him.
The victim ran to the complex’s clubhouse nearby with her two children while waiting for law enforcement to arrive.
The probable cause statement notes that Orange is a habitual mental health patient who takes drugs and hallucinates, oftentimes thinking he sees someone or something that is not actually there.
Deputies reportedly tried getting Orange to come out of the home, which they say he initially refused, until he opened the door and charged full speed at them. Officials deployed a taser, striking Orange, who was eventually taken into custody.
He was charged with burglary with a battery and resisting an officer without violence.
A warning from officials
Mesiti said these incidents are a good reminder for residents to be alert and lock their doors.
“Even though Port St. Lucie is still one of the safest cities in the state of Florida, one of the safest in the nation, don’t be complacent. Yes, one gentleman was mowing his yard. Most people, if you’re mowing your own yard, you do leave your garage door open, but maybe lock the interior garage door if you’re there to prevent these kinds of things from happening,” he said.
He said these types of incidents can happen anywhere.
“That’s what people need to understand, especially when you’re dealing with people in crisis, they might not even be aware of what they’re doing at times, not saying that was the case in this case, but it can happen anywhere. So it would be prudent to secure your home, even when you are home, and lock your doors. It’s just safe,” he added.
Mesiti also said officers with the PSLPD are trained to handle calls where a person is dealing with a mental health crisis. If no crime is committed, he said, they use their de-escalation policy, where they offer their services but eventually remove themselves from the area to avoid provoking or escalating the situation.
Get the latest news updates with the WPBF 25 News app. You can download it here.
“In a different situation, such as this, where a crime, a felony crime, is committed and other people are potentially in harm’s way, then we do have the duty to act and do what we need to do. Luckily, we were able to take him into custody without incident without the use of force,” he told WPBF.
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