BOCA RATON, FL (Boca Post) (Copyright © 2026) — A Boca Raton woman is charged with felony burglary and false imprisonment in a West Palm Beach case that police say started with a pepper spray attack at a parked vehicle and ended with the driver allegedly blocked in with no clear way out.
Jennifer Montes, 37, is charged with burglary of a conveyance with battery and false imprisonment, according to West Palm Beach Police Department paperwork and court records.
The probable cause affidavit describes the underlying incident as starting late on Jan. 24, 2025, when an officer was dispatched to a reported assault. At the scene, the officer wrote that a blue Chevrolet Traverse was parked with extensive rear-end damage and a “brown foamy residue” on the exterior and interior that the officer said appeared consistent with pepper spray based on training and experience.
Police identified the driver as Jaynisha Richardson, 32, who told the officer she had been pepper-sprayed and appeared “visibly distressed,” with facial redness, rubbing her eyes, and trouble breathing, the affidavit states. West Palm Beach Fire Rescue evaluated Richardson at the scene and cleared her medically, the affidavit says.
Richardson told police she received text messages asking her to come to the area from a phone number she believed belonged to her ex-boyfriend, Tramain Reed, and she decided to go meet him, according to the affidavit. She told police she was skeptical and felt the messages were a “trap,” in part because of unusual requests in the texts, including being asked to come inside a residence to meet people, the affidavit states.
Richardson said she drove to the location, parked in front of the residence, and pulled into a spot facing the building. While she was parked, she said a white van pulled up and parked directly behind her vehicle. The driver of the van then got out and approached the driver’s side of Richardson’s vehicle, the affidavit states.
Richardson described the person who approached her as an unknown Hispanic woman and provided a physical description, according to the affidavit.
Police allege the woman opened Richardson’s driver door and sprayed her with a chemical agent believed to be mace. Richardson told police she pushed the woman away and shut her door, and the woman ran back to the white van and got inside. Police noted there was no other interaction described between the two at that point.
Richardson then tried to leave, but the affidavit says the van repositioned closer from behind and blocked what police described as the only escape route. Richardson told police that as she tried to get away, she struck the white van with the rear of her vehicle. She said she could not see exactly what happened because of the pepper spray in her eyes, and the van fled, according to the affidavit.
Police wrote that no other calls came in at the time indicating any other disturbance, altercation, or crash.
In follow-up, the investigating officer wrote that he found Reed had been arrested in a separate West Palm Beach case on Nov. 15, 2025, described as a domestic situation, and Montes was listed as the victim in that case. The officer said he reviewed body-worn camera video from that earlier incident and concluded Montes matched the description Richardson gave of the woman who approached her vehicle.
Police then arranged a photo lineup. The affidavit says Richardson selected a photo and told police she was “100% confident” the person she picked was the person who attacked her.
Based on the investigation, police wrote they had probable cause to charge Montes with one count of burglary and one count of false imprisonment. In the affidavit, the officer describes the burglary allegation as tied to entering Richardson’s vehicle and using mace, and the false imprisonment allegation as tied to stopping Richardson from leaving with her vehicle.
Court records provided in the case history show a first appearance was set for Feb. 7, and the matter was later continued for additional dates including a 30-day return appearance in March and an initial case conference in April. The docket also reflects bond amounts set on the two felony counts and a no-contact condition with the victim.
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