- December 15, 2025
A 61-year-old Palm Coast man who was armed with a handgun and claimed he was being chased by Croatians and attempted to break into a neighbor’s house was arrested Tuesday morning, according to the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office.
Sheriff’s Office deputies arrested Peter Bauer, of the P-section, around 3:55 a.m. Tuesday on a charge of armed burglary.
Residents at 28 Peppercorn Lane, both teenagers, reported an elderly white male was banging at their door, asking for help and trying to open the sliding glass doors. The residents positively identified Bauer as the man who spent several minutes at their back door before running away.
Deputies found Bauer hiding between two vehicles in the driveway of 40 Peppercorn Lane. He was armed with a .380-caliber handgun and attempted to elude deputies who were able to place him under arrest, without incident, at 32 Peppercorn Lane.
Bauer told deputies that Croatians came into his home, and he fired about four shots at them before fleeing his home. The Palm Coast man had a cut on his chin and left shoulder, which he said occurred when he fell while running from the Croatians, according to the report.
When deputies went to Bauer’s home, they found the front door wide open and noticed the smell of gun powder. Several shell casings were found inside the home as well as a pile of white powder with a straw inside the bathroom. Bauer told deputies he had snorted cocaine Monday evening.
He was being held in the Flagler County Inmate Facility Tuesday morning on $1,500 bond.
“This man is off the streets right now and his neighborhood is safer,” Sheriff Donald Fleming said in a statement. “Those teens acted calmly and thoughtfully by staying away from Mr. Bauer and calling deputies. This could have been a tragic situation.”
