Man accused of killing roommate is a convicted sex offender

The man accused of murdering his roommate in Arlington at the beginning of June is also a registered sex offender.

Police arrested Stephen Bentley near Tampa for allegedly killing his roommate.

Records with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement show Bentley last registered as a transient living at the Regency Square Library in February of 2014.  The site also listed him as a transient living in the Monument Wal-Mart parking lot in 2013.

The records did not show Bentley resided at the Arlington apartment where his roommate was found dead, even though neighbors said Bentley had been living there for three months.

A quick search revealed three schools within a mile of the apartment where Bentley and his roommate, Joe-Nathan Williams, lived.

Police said a neighbor found Williams, 59, dead in the 7623 Jasper Avenue residence on June 2.

WOKV reached out to the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office to ask why Bentley was able to claim to live at the library, even though it’s located close to a school. JSO said that sexual predators cannot live within 2500 feet of a school in Duval County.

Since Bentley is classified as an offender, JSO said he is required to follow different rules.

WOKV’s partner Action News researched the list of registered sex offenders in Duval County and found that nearly 7 percent of offenders claimed to be transients, living in abandoned buildings, vacant lots or in the woods across Jacksonville.

Reports show Bentley failed to give notice of moving into a different jurisdiction in 2003 and failed to check-in with authorities in 2011.

He was charged with having child pornography in 2000.