Seven people have been arrested in connection with stealing police guns and equipment from an unmarked Polk County Sheriff’s vehicle last Friday.
Investigators said, unknown suspects broke into the cop car parked outside a Polk County detective’s home and stole a laptop computer, a ballistic vest, a gun-belt with two full Glock magazines, a Taser and Remington 870 shot gun and an Olympic Arms AR-15 rifle.
Working with the assistance of Lakeland Police Department, investigators received information that some of the stolen property was at 627 West Crescent Drive in Lakeland. Polk County SWAT members served a search warrant on the residence and located most of the stolen equipment.
Detectives arrested four suspects in the home and charged them with with armed burglary, two counts of grand theft of a firearm and grand theft.
They are: 21-year-old Vanessa Maiksch*, of 627 West Crescent Drive, 22-year-old Marshall “Jared” Johnson, of 1033 Victoria Lane in Lakeland, 18-year-old Christopher Dewey*, of an unknown address and 19-year-old James Chestnut* of Winchester Estates in Lakeland.
The stolen AR-15 rifle was recovered on Tuesday after detectives received information that two men were seen purchasing the weapon.
Alex Monpremier and 20-year-old Samuel Destin confessed to purchasing the stolen rifle and told detectives they in turn had sold it to 22-year-old Antonio Ray.
The AR-15 rifle was located at a residence in Lake Wales and on Wednesday, May 11, Ray was taken into custody without incident and booked into the Polk County Jail. He has been charged with grand theft of a firearm, dealing in stolen property, among other charges.
Destin was arrested and booked into the Polk County Jail and Monpremier, a 17-year-old was arrested and taken to the Juvenile Assessment Center. Both were charged with one count of grand theft of a firearm and one count of dealing in stolen property.
* No photos available for Maikisch, Dewey and Chestnut.
