A resident who reported suspicious activity helped Flagler County Sheriff’s Office deputies locate stolen power tools and arrest a man found with narcotics in his possession.
Deputies responded to Rockne Lane on Wednesday after an alert resident reported seeing a suspicious person carrying large objects along their fence line. While canvassing the area, deputies found Phillip Demaio Jr., 18, of Bunnell, throwing objects from the roadway into the woods.
During a search for weapons, deputies found a pocket knife and a syringe on Demaio. They also retrieved a cigarette carton that Demaio had placed on a deputy’s patrol car. Testing revealed that the needle on the syringe was positive for fentanyl, and a wet cotton ball inside the cigarette carton tested positive for methamphetamine.
Several power tools were among the items in Demaio’s possession, including a DeWalt leaf blower, a Makita drill bit set, and a Milwaukee hammer. Deputies also found a large Orca cooler.
After speaking with residents in the area, deputies learned that a homeowner was missing items from the back of their pickup truck. The stolen items were returned to the victim, who decided to press charges.
Sheriff Rick Staly praised the resident who made the initial report. “This is another great example of ‘see something, say something’ in action,” Staly said. “Thanks to a vigilant citizen and the diligent work of our deputies, this thief is in jail and items he had stolen have been returned to their owners.”
Deputies arrested Demaio on charges of burglary of a conveyance, possession of drug paraphernalia, and two counts of possession of a controlled substance without a prescription. He was transported to the Sheriff Perry Hall Inmate Detention Facility, where he was later released on $5,000 bond.
The post Alert Resident’s Tip Leads Deputies to Arrest Man With Stolen Tools and Narcotics first appeared on Flagler County Buzz.
