Articles Posted in Theft Crimes

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Two individuals were arrested when a neighbor informed the authorities that the couple moved into a home on the Gulf Coast without permission and allegedly ran an ad to rent out the dwelling.

According to reports, homes in the unincorporated Sarasota County town of Nokomis were damaged during recent hurricanes. Several owners and residents have been working on repairs, so when a couple began staying in an unoccupied local home and started cleaning it up, it did not initially seem out of the ordinary. After the man pressure-washed the outside of the house, he asked the neighbor across the street to pay him for the job. Requesting money from the individual raised red flags, and the neighbor decided to notify the authorities so the police could determine if everything going on was above board. The neighbor also reported seeing a “for rent” listing for the house when they were on Facebook.

The homeowner, who was in Jacksonville, learned about the situation when they talked to deputies with the Sarasota Sheriff’s Office. They said they did not permit anyone to be in the house and wanted to press charges against the alleged squatters. When deputies went to the residence, they reported that there was fresh food in the fridge, in addition to other indications that the couple had been living there. When they spoke to the authorities, they said they were there because they were hired to take care of the mess.

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A Florida man was arrested after he was involved in a traffic accident and identified as the suspect involved in a case regarding a police officer’s stolen IRS refund check.

At the beginning of the summer, a police officer was awaiting the direct deposit of his IRS refund. He reported that it never showed up in his bank account, and he contacted the IRS about the situation. He was informed that they had mailed his refund instead of issuing it through direct deposit. The officer said he did not receive it, and they told him their records indicated it had already been cashed.

An investigation was opened, and the $20,694 check was traced to a local SoFi Bank. When the financial institution checked their records, they tracked down the check in an account that was opened in July 2023. They also reportedly discovered there were multiple transactions involving cashed United States Treasury checks that appeared to have been made out in the name of the account holder. They learned that money was taken out using ATMs, and several purchases of money orders were tracked to a few different Publix markets. The police checked the surveillance recordings from the stores, and they believed the suspect was a 34-year-old man from Coral Springs. An arrest warrant was activated.

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An Ohio man who is already facing charges for theft-related offenses was apprehended for additional theft charges last weekend after allegedly stealing multiple packages of medicine from a store in Wood County.

According to reports, over the past month, a man from Bowling Green has had more than one run-in with the law that led to his arrest. Early in the morning on January 3, the 32-year-old was reportedly strolling down the middle of the left lane on a two-way street during a snowstorm. Officers from the Bowling Green Police Department spotted him and approached, but they reported that when they told him to stop, the man continued walking. He reported continued struggling when they handcuffed him. After he was taken into custody, he was jailed on suspicion of obstructing official business, resisting arrest, and pedestrian walking in the roadway.

On the evening of January 11, the authorities were notified about a potential theft. When the police went to the establishment and spoke to the employees, they informed the officers that prior to the current incident, the person they named as the suspect had stolen goods from their store several times. When the man was searched, he was allegedly found with the contents of two boxes of cold medicine.

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Two Texas men are facing multiple charges after they were arrested in connection with thefts from hotel parking lots in several cities.

Early in the morning on January 4, the authorities received a report about a potential car theft that was happening at the Holiday Inn Express in Sweetwater. Officers from the Sweetwater Police Department went to the hotel to investigate. When they arrived, they found one of the suspects sitting in a car in the hotel parking lot. The officers reported that the man they believed was the second suspect fled the scene and entered the woods near the property.

Drones, thermal imaging equipment, and a K9 were used in the search for the man, and he was quickly found.

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An Arizona man with a popular TikTok account may face legal consequences after posting content of himself allegedly spraying food with pesticides at a Walmart store.

On the evening of December 19, a 27-year-old man who is well known on TikTok visited a Walmart in Mesa. It was reported that he went to the store to film a prank video for his 349,000 followers. The internet personality reportedly took a can of what was believed to be Hot Shot Ultra Bed Bug and Flea Killer from a shelf and recorded himself as he allegedly doused several food items with it. Afterward, the footage was posted on his account.

When the authorities learned about the incident, they began investigating. The Tempe Police Department teamed up with the Mesa Police Department and identified the man they believed was responsible. Detectives from the Mesa Police Department spoke to the suspect, who said he would meet with them to discuss the incident. According to a release from the police department, the man was asked if he sprayed the “various produce items, including vegetables, fruit, and rotisserie chickens that were available for purchase” with pesticides as it appeared in the video. He reportedly told the detectives that he did spray the food items, but that he threw all of them in the garbage afterwards.

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An Alabama TikTok influencer is facing several charges after a lengthy investigation allegedly revealed that she created a fake charity to bilk donors out of a total of over $1,000,000.

According to reports, approximately three years ago, a TikTok influencer who goes by the usernames “Slotmachinequeen” and “Slot_7.0” allegedly started a charity fund to help victims of domestic violence and homelessness. She reportedly asked that people send their donations directly to her using digital payment services such as PayPal, CashApp, and Venmo. People all over the world contributed to the cause, and over the course of approximately three years, at least $1,000,000 was reportedly collected.

In October, the authorities began receiving reports from individuals who suspected the charity was fraudulent, and the Limestone County Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigation Division began looking into the claims. Their investigation led them to a 57-year-old woman from Athens. They believed the situation began in 2021, and they reported that the charity the woman allegedly claimed to be collecting donations for did not exist. It was also reported that the woman, who has not had a job since 2020, appeared to have transferred the money donated to the faux charity into her personal bank account.

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A southern Florida woman accused of being part of a retail theft ring was arrested after allegedly stealing merchandise from several stores in multiple counties.

It was reported that law enforcement and the Florida Organized Retail Crime Exchange Task Force teamed up to investigate multiple thefts taking place across the state. The authorities believed the thefts, carried out in at least 50 different stores, spanned over a period of nearly two years. It was also reported that the swiped merchandise was estimated as being worth at least $100,000. It was believed that the goods that were taken were being sold on social media, and the three suspects they believed were responsible were arrested.

Last week, one of the women from the trio was allegedly involved in additional thefts. According to the authorities, when the suspect went to Walgreens, CVS, Ulta, and liquor stores in Brevard, Martin, Palm Beach, Sarasota, and Seminole counties. She allegedly collected items and stashed them in a bag before walking out of the store without paying for the items. It was assessed that the merchandise taken from the stores was worth approximately $15,000.

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A central California man who is currently on parole is facing multiple charges after allegedly smashing a stolen car into several vehicles in a grocery store parking lot before trying to flee from the authorities.

Early in the afternoon on December 8, a man was allegedly driving recklessly in a Trader Joe’s parking lot in Santa Barbara. It was reported that he backed into one car and struck several other vehicles in the lot, in addition to nearly hitting pedestrians. After the alleged event, the man reportedly sped away. The authorities were notified, and officers from the Santa Barbara Police Department headed to Trader Joe’s to investigate.

At the same time, someone who saw the vehicle on the road called 911 to give them the car’s license plate number after witnessing the driver allegedly fail to stop at a red light and nearly crash into people riding bicycles. Officers began searching for his car when they received the suspect’s location.

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A K9 was instrumental in helping the police catch and arrest a western Oregon man that they believed was involved in several types of theft crimes.

On December 9, a 55-year-old man who resides in a trailer in Newport, Oregon, found himself in handcuffs after allegedly carrying out a string of illegal acts. According to reports, he swiped a vehicle and took advantage of the personal belongings he found inside, including a credit card. The man reportedly headed towards Highway 101 and made pit stops at a few markets where he allegedly used the card to pay for his purchases.

The authorities received a call about a vehicle on the highway, and when officers from the Newport Police Department got there, they reported that the vehicle’s doors were open, but they did not see anyone around. The owner of the car was identified, and when the officers called them, they said they had no idea it had been stolen.

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A Florida man is facing felony charges after reportedly pretending to be Elon Musk in an alleged scheme that allowed him to steal at least $250,000 from an elderly woman.

According to reports, in 2023, a 74-year-old woman from Texas started getting messages on Facebook from someone who claimed to be Elon Musk. After a while, the person she was chatting with convinced her she was, in fact, corresponding with the tech billionaire. The account holder or holders began giving her promises that she would make $55 billion if she invested money in their businesses. The woman decided she would like to accept the offer, and, over time, she transferred a total of $250,000 to multiple bank accounts.

The authorities in Texas were made aware of the situation and they opened an investigation. They talked to the alleged victim’s husband, and he said his wife transferred $600,000 total for the faux investments. The police were able to trace the bank activity, and they learned that $250,000 of the money was sent to personal and business accounts held by a 56-year-old man from Bradenton, Florida. They contacted the authorities in Florida about the situation, and officers from the Bradenton Police Department went to the man’s home with a warrant.

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