Hernando sheriff arrests sexual offender over false address, missed registration

A Chesire Street address in Hernando County turned out to be vacant, and detectives say the man listed there had already fallen out of compliance with Florida’s sexual-offender registration rules. The Hernando County Sheriff’s Office arrested James Richard Duket after investigators concluded he failed to report where he was actually living and missed his required bi-annual re-registration.

Duket, born May 27, 1968, had been convicted in Pasco County in 2012 of lewd or lascivious battery involving a victim under 16 and an offender 18 or older. That conviction placed him under Florida’s sexual-offender registration requirements, which are meant to keep law enforcement and the public informed when a registrant changes residences or fails to appear for renewal.

Detectives said information came in that Duket had not lived at the Chesire Street address in his profile since March 2026. On June 3, Detective Marcacci went to the reported address and confirmed the residence was vacant. Marcacci then reviewed Duket’s Florida Department of Law Enforcement Sexual Offender and Predator System profile and found that he had not completed his mandatory bi-annual re-registration during his May birth month.

The next day, June 4, Duket came to the sheriff’s office to complete the overdue registration. When questioned, he told investigators he had not lived at the registered permanent address since April. Detectives concluded that he knowingly provided false address information under penalty of perjury when he certified his registration.

He was arrested on three charges: failure to report a change of address within 48 hours, failure to complete bi-annual registration, and knowingly providing false registration information by act or omission. Deputies transported him to the Hernando County Detention Center, where he was held without bond.

The case shows how the registry is enforced after release, not just at the start of supervision. Florida law requires sexual offenders to report in person to the sheriff’s office in the county where they reside or are otherwise located to reregister, and any permanent, temporary or transient residence change must be reported within 48 hours. FDLE says registry data is updated through sheriffs, the Department of Corrections and the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, and the public can call 1-888-FL-PREDATOR, or 1-888-357-7332, for registry information. In Hernando County, the June 9 arrest followed other recent compliance actions, including a June 4 case involving a career offender and a May 6 arrest tied to bi-annual registration, signaling active verification by local deputies.