Convicted Sex Offender Hiding in Weeki Wachee Arrested After Tip to HCSO

John Earnest Collier Jr. had been living at a Weeki Wachee residence for nearly three months when a tip to the Hernando County Sheriff's Office ended his quiet disappearing act on March 24. The 61-year-old convicted sex offender, on parole with the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, had absconded from Texas carrying two active felony warrants and never registered with Florida authorities.

Detective Marcacci ran Collier's name through the Florida Crime Information Center and National Crime Information Center on the same day the tip came in. Both databases flagged two active felony warrants out of Polk County, Texas, for parole violations tied to original charges that include aggravated sexual assault of a child victim 8 years of age and failure to register as a sexual offender.

With the warrants confirmed, Detective Marcacci and the U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force made contact with Collier at the Weeki Wachee address and took him into custody without incident.

During questioning, Collier told deputies he had fled Texas after learning he had violated his parole conditions. He acknowledged that leaving the state required him to notify Texas authorities and register as a sexual offender in any new state of residence, including Florida, and that he had done neither since arriving in Weeki Wachee in January 2026. Collier also told deputies he had served approximately 18 years in prison for a 2008 conviction involving a child victim.

He was charged in Florida with failure to register as a sexual offender within 48 hours and is being held without bond.

"The Hernando County Sheriff's Office remains committed to aggressively monitoring sexual offenders and predators within our community," the agency said. "Compliance with registration and reporting requirements is not optional. Those who choose to violate the law will be located and held accountable."

The investigation began and concluded on March 24, the same day the tip reached HCSO. Collier remains in the Hernando County detention system pending further legal action on both the Florida charge and the Polk County, Texas parole-violation warrants.