SANFORD, Fla. — A Sanford man was arrested after police said he grabbed a woman and prevented her from opening the door for officers during a disturbance call.
According to a Sanford Police Department arrest report, officers responded around 3:44 a.m. Wednesday to a home on Bob Thomas Circle after hearing a verbal disturbance between a man and a woman.
Police said officers announced themselves at the door and heard the argument get louder. The woman could be heard telling the man to let her go and screaming for help, according to the report.
Due to the circumstances, officers forced entry through a carport door leading to a laundry room, then into the living room.
Police said they saw the woman walking toward the front door and Morris Barber standing in the kitchen with his hands up.
The woman told police Barber woke her up earlier that morning and accused her of someone banging on a window outside, according to the report. She said Barber continued yelling at her and later followed her as she retreated to her room.
When officers knocked on the door, the woman said she tried to walk through the hallway to open it but was met by Barber, the report states.
Police said Barber grabbed her with both arms, hugged her and told her not to open the door for officers. The woman said a struggle followed as she tried to get away, but Barber pushed her back toward her room, according to the report.
Investigators said probable cause was established for false imprisonment and simple battery.
Barber was arrested on charges of battery touch or strike and kidnapping-false imprisonment of a person, according to the report.
Police said Barber was medically cleared before being taken to jail.
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