Lehigh Acres man to spend 30 years for 2020 Golden Gate robbery, assault

A Lehigh Acres man convicted in a 2020 Golden Gate home invasion, where he and another suspect bound, beat and robbed three victims at gunpoint, will serve 30 years in prison, the State Attorney's Office reports.

Andres Tremols Tapanes, 37, was convicted of robbery with a firearm while wearing a mask and 30 years in prison for aggravated battery on a person 65 or older. The sentences are to run concurrently.

Tapanes was convicted in April following a jury trial in Collier County.

On November 21, 2020, just before 7 p.m., deputies with the Collier County Sheriff’s Office, were dispatched to a residence in Golden Gate.

Video surveillance shows two subjects wearing masks and gloves, trying to gain entry at the front door, then running behind the residence.

They punched one victim, forcing them to the ground and zip-tied them. They ordered another victim to the ground at gunpoint. They took money from a safe in the home. The men also beat and bound a third victim sitting in a vehicle outside.

While neither suspect was located that night, a later search of the area led to the discovery of a glove that matched a glove worn by one of the suspects.

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement analyzed the evidence and DNA from inside the glove that led to the identity of Tapanes.

Stacey Henson is the breaking news and visuals editor for the Naples Daily News and Fort Myers News-Press. You may reach her at shenson@gannett.com