Editor’s note: Quotes from jail communications are reproduced as originally written, including spelling and grammatical errors.
Fort Walton Beach City Councilman and builder Bryce Jeter purchased a property declared unsafe for $65,000 after negotiating with the incarcerated owner through the county’s jail messaging system and later posting his bail, according to court documents and jail communication records.
- Walter Robinson was arrested July 14 on charges of keeping a public nuisance structure for drug activity at his residence at 15 Elm Avenue. According to an arrest affidavit, the property had a history of drug-related issues, including a previous narcotics search warrant executed in 2024.
According to the affidavit, Fort Walton Beach police had responded to the address 15 times in one year, mostly for disturbances and criminal activity.
The same day as Robinson’s arrest, the city’s Building Department issued a notice declaring the property unsafe due to mold, broken sewer lines and structural damage. According to the report, code enforcement had previously warned Robinson about violations on April 28. A sign reading “This building is unsafe and its occupancy has been prohibited by the building official” was posted in the front yard.
According to the building department notice, the inspection revealed damage to plumbing, electrical and mechanical systems caused by prolonged neglect. Mold growth was noted as present throughout the interior, particularly around a collapsed ceiling that indicated water intrusion. The structure contained “filth and contamination” and lacked adequate mechanical ventilation, contributing to unsanitary and unsafe living conditions, according to the city.
- The inspection also found that the sanitary sewer system had been “intentionally compromised” with broken lines discharging raw sewage into the yard, creating an unsanitary environment that posed serious health concerns and contributed to the presence of pests and vermin.
Building Official Joshua Stevens directed that the property owner take immediate corrective action and that the property be vacated and remain unoccupied until all identified violations were corrected. All necessary repairs were required to commence no later than Aug. 18, 2025.
Fifteen days after Robinson’s arrest, Jeter initiated contact through the Okaloosa County Jail’s HomeWAV messaging system. Communication logs show negotiations between July 29 and Aug. 15, when Jeter posted Robinson’s $3,500 bail.
“Good Morning Mr. Robinson. I was wanting to get in contact with you in regards to the property at 15 Elm,” Jeter wrote in his first message on July 29. An hour-and-a-half later, Robinson replied, “Im listning.”
The jail messages show back-and-forth negotiations over several weeks. Robinson initially asked for $75,000, with Jeter responding he could pay $55,000 in cash and close “in a couple of weeks.” After continued discussions, they eventually agreed on $65,000 with the property “as-is.”
- Robinson appeared good with the deal in the message, writing “$65,000 Plus $350 bond also should close the case!!” on July 29.
The jail messages show a different account than claims made during an August 19 Special Magistrate hearing regarding the property by Frank Esposito, who said he had been negotiating to purchase the property before Robinson’s arrest.
During the hearing, Esposito raised concerns about the transaction. Esposito told Special Magistrate Steve Bauman that Jeter “solicited him [Robinson] in jail and told him if he wants to get out of jail to sell him the property.”
- “If he doesn’t do that, there’s a chance that he won’t get out of jail and he’ll get nothing for the property and he’ll lose the property. So it’s in his best interest to sell him the property,” Esposito said.
However, the jail communication logs show Robinson participating in negotiations and at times wanting a higher price or expressing concerns about timing. When delays in the bail process occurred, Robinson wrote Jeter on August 9: “might as well put 50 on my commisary deadline is 10 PM tonight.”
The messages show detailed negotiations about logistics, with Jeter offering to coordinate Robinson’s move and providing assistance. “We will have a dumpster outside on property so that you can throw out anything you do not want, and there will be people on site to assist,” Jeter wrote.
- Jeter agreed to hold $5,000 from the sale proceeds until Robinson completed his move-out, clarifying “WE WILL HOLD 5K AND IT WIL NOT BW THE BOND MONEY” when Robinson expressed confusion about the arrangement.
The communications show both parties seeking confirmation of the agreement. “do we have a deal?” Jeter asked, to which Robinson confirmed: “yes ($65,000 and bond) might not need bond soon as the state knows its sold!!!!!!”
At one point, when negotiations seemed uncertain, Jeter wrote: “Sir with all due respect you are getting 65 thousand dollars out of this deal. I can just wait for the property to come up for sale. And you won’t get a cent! your bond is 3,500 not 350. you can use the 65k yo post bond and get out the day of closing! I will give you 5 days after closing to remove your personal items.”
- Robinson also told Jeter: “look sir I must be out in order for this deal to proceed.”
When Jeter offered to close the deal and post bond the same day, Robinson wrote: “Perfect im excited!! see you in the AM!!” with smiling emojis.
At the magistrate hearing, Robinson said he needed 30 days to retrieve his belongings from the property but was afraid to return due to a trespass warning.
“I don’t want to go back to Crestview ever again. That’s a deterrent to me,” Robinson said. “And me and him [Esposito] had spoke months and months before that, and because I didn’t want to live over there anymore because of the nefarious things that I found that was going on with some tenants and all that.”
- The Magistrate continued the code enforcement case for 30 days to allow resolution of ownership questions. Code Enforcement Officer Lt. Troy Williams said the building official had issued an order to vacate the property due to uninhabitable conditions.
Jeter, who has worked as a builder in the area for 20 years and has a history of buying and renovating properties in the neighborhood, said the transaction was legitimate and had nothing to do with his role on the city council.
“This transaction had nothing to do with me being a Fort Walton Beach Councilmember,” Jeter said. “For over 20 years, I have been buying property in this neighborhood and I hope to continue for the next 20 years, whether I am on council or not. I am a builder first and I love seeing blighted, neglected homes cleaned up for the safety of our kids and the improvement of our community!”
Jeter said he became interested in the property after seeing police tape and an unsafe building sign in the yard. “The house had police tape around it and a condemned sign in the front yard. To me, that means I should do some more research and figure out why the property is in that status and if I can help improve it,” he said.
- “I did exactly as I have done on countless other occasions – I located the owner and asked if it was available to purchase. He happened to be in jail and he said yes he would sell it,” Jeter said.
Jeter said there is nothing illegal about him contacting Robinson in jail and compared it to reaching out to property owners anywhere. He said Robinson “named his price” and “agreed to sell,” adding that Robinson told him he wanted to move to Alabama or California.
Robinson asked Jeter to pay his bond and for time to retrieve personal items, which Jeter chalked up as negotiation terms. “That is how a negotiation works – both sides ask for concessions and some are granted in favor on both sides of the buyer and the seller,” he said.
Regarding perceptions that he took advantage of Robinson’s situation, Jeter said: “He took advantage of my want to purchase this property just as much as his need to sell it. I believe neither of us took unfair or undisclosed advantage of the other.”
- Jeter noted that Robinson has already cashed the proceed checks and emphasized that “in all successful real estate transactions, you must have a willing seller, a willing buyer, a legally signed deed and exchange of funds. We have all of that here.”
One Response
Interesting reading City Councilman Jeter says for over 20 years I’ve been buying property in the neighborhood,whether I am on Council or not “I am a builder first”
Well that certainly explains alot on where Jeters true priorities and interests are.
Seems like his hammer and nails are more important then his constituents and serving the publics best interest.
The fact Jeter keeps reiterating his above board realeastate transaction with a fort walton beach homeowner while incarcerated under duress and withdrawing from drug use makes for a perfectly good setting and recipe for one hell of a iron clad closing.
That must Be The Jeter Builder way and the Jeter Councilman way.Either way Councilman or Builder Jetter is Jetter and Jetter Orchrastrated and concocted this transaction.
Most people use title companies for closing realestate transactions .
All parties willingly show while the title company looks to protect all parties involved.
They may even provide doughnuts and coffee while explaining everything prior to signing and then after everybody understands and agrees all parties get a copy of all.
Now you have the Councilman , Builder Jeter way you get to sign documents in a jail with no explanation and refused all and any copies at signing that is per Mr Robinson the homeowners claim
Well those so called above board transactions are being looked into.