MIAMI – George Zimmerman, the former neighborhood watch volunteer charged with murder in the killing of Trayvon Martin, surrendered to police Sunday and was booked into a central Florida jail two days after his bond was revoked.
Zimmerman’s legal team said in a tweet Sunday afternoon that he was in police custody.
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Circuit Judge Kenneth Lester revoked Zimmerman’s bond Friday, saying that the defendant and his wife had lied to the court in April about their finances so he could obtain a lower bond.
About 40 minutes before the 2:30 p.m. Sunday deadline to surrender, the Seminole County jail website listed Zimmerman as an inmate. He was being held without bail and had $500 in his jail account, the website showed.
Sheriff Donald Eslinger said Zimmerman turned himself in to two sheriff’s office employees around 1:25 p.m. near the jail, and was then driven there. Zimmerman arrived handcuffed in a white minivan and did not respond to questions from reporters as he walked inside.
“He is quiet and cooperative,” Eslinger said at a news conference after Zimmerman’s surrender.
The sheriff’s office said the 28-year-old Zimmerman would be in a cell by himself, separated from the general population, because the case is high-profile. He will not have access to a TV.
Prosecutors said last week that Zimmerman and his wife told the judge at a bond hearing in April that they had limited money, even though he had raised about $135,000 through a website set up for his legal defense. They suggested that more has been collected since and deposited in a bank account. Defense attorneys say the matter is a misunderstanding.
The judge said Friday he would schedule a hearing after Zimmerman was back in custody so he could explain himself.
Prosecutor Bernie De la Rionda complained Friday, “This court was led to believe they didn’t have a single penny. It was misleading and I don’t know what words to use other than it was a blatant lie.” The judge agreed and ordered Zimmerman returned to jail.
The defense countered that Zimmerman and his wife never used the money for anything, which indicated “there was no deceit.”
Zimmerman was charged in April with second-degree murder in the fatal shooting of the 17-year-old Martin in Sanford. He has been staying at an undisclosed location for his safety.
Zimmerman’s legal team said Sunday that they will ask for a new bond hearing to address the judge’s concerns, and that they hope his voluntary surrender will show he is not a flight risk.
The money that Zimmerman has raised is in an independent trust and cannot be directly accessed by Zimmerman or his attorneys, according to a news release.
Legal experts say Zimmerman’s credibility could become an issue at trial, noting that the case hinges on jurors believing Zimmerman’s account of what happened the night in February when Martin was killed.
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