MCSO deputies release video catching “carhopping” suspect

OCALA, Fla. (WCJB) - Marion County Sheriff’s Office released video of deputies arresting a 15-year-old driving a vehicle stolen from Gainesville after leading deputies on a chase.

Deputies say On July 28, they spotted a red Ford truck driving on Southwest Highway 200 that was reported stolen out of Gainesville. Deputies tried to perform a traffic stop, and that’s when the teenage driver sped off.

A sheriff’s office helicopter unit followed the truck until it stopped in a vacant lot off Southwest First Avenue in downtown Ocala. The 15-year-old got out of the car and ran.

A K-9 unit tracked the suspect, ultimately bringing him into custody. During the chase, the teen dropped a bookbag containing a ammunition and Glock 22 handgun, which was reported stolen from Gainesville.

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The teenager told deputies during an interview, that he and a friend were driving around Ocala to go carhopping, the process of burglarizing multiple cars in an area.

The driver also said the pair vandalized an Alachua County Sheriff’s Office patrol vehicle.

He was charged with five counts of Armed Burglary, Burglary of an Unoccupied Conveyance, three counts of Petit Theft, and two counts of Grand Theft of a Motor Vehicle, Fleeing or Attempting to Elude, and Possession of a Firearm by a Person under 18 years of age.

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