By Shelby Stewart
Staff Writer
A multi-community investigation by local law enforcement recently ended in four arrests and recovered vehicle along with stolen property.
At 9:52 a.m., Jan. 20, Brandon deputies responded to a report of larceny.
Deputies met with the victim, who learned that his truck was stolen, as well as some lawn care equipment. The theft was caught on surveillance video. A few days later, deputies in Pontiac pulled behind a motorist that had run out of gas. During the time deputies were there, the victim pulled up behind them and stated that the man who had run out of gas was the one who robbed him, and that he recognized the vehicle. The driver deputies were assisting was detained and taken to the Brandon substation for questioning.
Deputies spoke with the man, and determined that he was not involved in the theft of the vehicle, but his car was the same make and model of a car involved in a different theft out of Waterford. While conducting the investigation, the victim advised deputies that he had identified two backpack blowers that had been stolen from his trailer for sale online. Deputies were able to find a possible address of the seller. The seller was cooperative and said that he had bought the two backpack blowers from someone, and that he also sold him a snow plow and a salt spreader. He stated he had known the man for 10 years, and that he has a legitimate online store where he buys and sells merchandise. The man he bought them from assured him that they were not stolen. He said he had already sold the plow and salter, and provided contact information for the buyer. He also gave police an address for the man’s parents.
Deputies recovered both backpack blowers and responded to the address to speak with the suspect’s parents. Both of them said the suspect did not stay there, but came by occasionally. They said they don’t know where he’s staying and don’t want to deal with his problems. They gave deputies the address of the suspect’s girlfriend, and said that he had been driving a lot of different cars lately. His mother said she had seen the truck with a snow plow and salt spreader on the day of the larceny, and that her son and two other subjects took the plow and salt spreader off of the truck. She provided deputies with the surveillance video. Deputies were also able to make contact with the buyer of the salt spreader and plow and recover both items.

The buyer was able to provide the address of the suspect where he had picked up the items, and on Jan. 28, deputies received a call from an anonymous source that the suspect and his girlfriend would be at a grocery store that afternoon. Deputies drove to the location and located the vehicle model provided and were able to take both of them into custody. The suspect said he had purchased the equipment from a guy he knows, and that the guy had been driving the suspected stolen vehicle at the time. He said the man and his girlfriend had just stolen the stuck from a landscape yard that his girlfriend knew about. He said he didn’t know where the truck was, but he knew the guy was driving it. They gave the address for the new suspect’s girlfriend, and the current suspect was turned over to the Auto Theft Detectives.
Deputies followed up and met with the woman who supposedly drove the suspect to the location where the theft took place, and she was turned over to the Auto Theft Detectives as well.
On Jan. 29, the girlfriend of the original suspect said she had managed to locate the suspect and gave a location of where they would be so deputies could apprehend him. Deputies executed a traffic stop and took the man to be interviewed at the Brandon Substation. He admitted to being the one to steal the truck and equipment while his girlfriend drove him to the location. He gave deputies the name of his friend who had sold the truck to someone else, and that they had dropped the truck off three days prior. He also gave deputies the location and name of someone who had contact information for the friend.
After calling a few different people, deputies received a call from the man who had bought the truck, and gave deputies a location of where it would be. Deputies were able to locate it and contact a towing company to recover it. The suspect who admitted to the theft and his girlfriend were issued one count of unlawful driveaway of an automobile and one count of Larceny.
All stolen property was recovered and the investigation resulted in four arrests.