13-Year-Old Arrested In Deltona Car Break Spree; Stolen Gun Recovered

Date Added: May 04, 2023 4:29 pm

Andrew Gant
Office of Public Affairs & Media Relations

13-YEAR-OLD ARRESTED IN DELTONA CAR BREAK SPREE; STOLEN GUN RECOVERED

A 13-year-old Deltona boy has been identified and arrested in a series of car break-ins after his mother reported finding a stolen gun hidden outside her house.

The car breaks were reported from March 27 to April 11 on several streets along Elkcam Boulevard in Deltona. Video surveillance in the area was poor quality but caught a thin male suspect wearing a hoodie and riding a bicycle.

As detectives continued pursuing leads, on Wednesday, deputies responded to a report of a found firearm. The reporting person told deputies she’d been having behavioral issues with her son, and she was searching her property for money he stole from her. During the search, a 9mm pistol was discovered on the side of the house near an air conditioning unit.

When she called law enforcement, her son packed a bag and ran away.

Detectives noticed his description matched that of the suspect previously caught on camera. They also checked video surveillance from a neighbor’s house and observed the boy leaving home on the night of several burglaries, wearing the same clothing as the suspect.

Later located at his great grandmother’s house, the boy admitted to the break-ins as well as a package theft. He also admitted to taking the pistol from a pickup truck near his home.

He was charged with armed burglary to a conveyance, grand theft firearm, 4 counts of burglary to a conveyance and 4 counts of petit theft, taken to the Volusia Family Resource Center for processing and then transported to the Department of Juvenile Justice.