A Tamarac man is in jail, accused of pointing a gun at his neighbors several times.
Jonathan Sulzer said his neighbor, Michael Potente, terrorized him, his family and their neighbors for months. He said it started out small.
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WATCH HERE“He comes out, starts screaming, threatening everybody,” Sulzer said. “He creeps around, just stalking, trying to hit people on bicycles.”
Then things got worse. Sulzer told deputies he was standing in front of his Tamarac home on Feb. 13 when Potente pointed a gun at him from across the street.
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“It was a surprise at first,” Sulzer said. “Pointed a gun at me alone at least six times, my sister twice, my mom once.”
Sulzer said the next day, his neighbor pointed a gun at his sister, Vanessa Acosta. Acosta said Potente pointed a gun at her as she was coming home from walking her dog.
“He's like this with the gun, and I stood in shock, and every movement I tried to make, he was following me with the gun,” Acosta said. “I go to jump in the Uber, he opens the door, I see my other neighbor, and from this side, he has the gun on me and my neighbor.”
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Acosta and her brother said they reached out to police, the Broward Sheriff's Office, and even the HOA, but nothing significant happened until Tuesday.
Sulzer said his neighbor pointed a gun at him again and this time, deputies said they could see Potente on the surveillance camera clear as day.
“When my sister and my mom feel uncomfortable in front of our house, that's when it becomes an issue,” Sulzer said.
Patrick Decarlo lives next door to Sulzer. He said he's had his own encounters with their neighbor, including the time he says Potente threw a pot at him.
Potente also came within 70 feet of Decarlo's home, which violated an injunction order, an arrest report said.
“I'm in fear, I don't know what to expect with this guy, I have to always look over my shoulder,” Decarlo said. “I know when he gets out, I can't predict and I hate assuming, but I believe something is going to happen.”
It’s a fear many people in the neighborhood have.
“I have to take my mom, my sister, to get restraining orders, it's a hassle, it's stuff that shouldn't need to be done when actions should have been took the first time," Sulzer said.
Potente faces several charges, including aggravated assault with a deadly weapon without intent to kill and aggravated stalking.
In bond court Friday, a judge set Potente's bond to $32,000. This was in addition to the $40,000 bond he posted Thursday. He was also ordered to wear an ankle monitor, to stay away from the victims, and to not have any firearms.
