Pizza solved the crime? Suspect in car break-ins left sauce at scene, Florida cops say
If only there had been a napkin around.
You remember the old tale of Hansel & Gretel, the brother and sister who used a trail of bread crumbs to find their way back home? A suspect in Florida used something else to help cops find him: pizza.
According to a Facebook post from the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office, Dewey Smith was arrested Wednesday, accused of breaking into two cars in Deltona, and leaving a bit of a mess behind.
According to a police report, deputies went to the scene of the first car break-in at around 7:30 a.m. to find the center console open and glove box rummaged through, a wallet missing. They also noticed what appeared to be marinara sauce on the inside handle of the driver’s side door.
Because the car was wet and the interior was “rough,” fingerprints could not be obtained, the complaint said.
A few doors down the street, deputies responded to the second car break-in, in which 9mm handgun and concealed weapons permit were taken. Outside that vehicle was an empty pizza box. It’s unclear if there was sauce inside the second vehicle.
As deputies canvassed the area, they spoke to a neighbor who reported that Smith, an acquaintance, had stopped by her home overnight. She said the visitor, who was in possession of a gun as well as a bag of credit cards, ate her discarded Little Caesars pizza out of the garbage.
Some time later, deputies tracked down Smith in another neighborhood. The 38-year-old was still carrying the victims’ credit cards and IDs.
Investigators learned that the stolen credit cards had been used overnight at three Deltona gas stations.
“You got me red-handed,” he reportedly told deputies.
Smith was charged with armed burglary of a conveyance, burglary of a conveyance, four counts of fraudulent use of credit cards, grand theft of a firearm, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, theft and dealing in stolen property. He was taken to the Volusia County Branch Jail where he remained in custody on $71,000 bond.
The stolen handgun was not immediately located.
