[PHOTO CREDIT: Lake County Sheriff’s Office]
[Original Publish Date: 06/12/20]
CLERMONT, Florida — An Orlando man suspected in a string of thefts across Central Florida is in the Lake County Jail facing six felony charges from 2019.
In June 2019, Clermont Police began investigating several theft cases, including a theft from a local gym on June 18. The victim told police he placed a black sling bag in a locker that contained a handgun and when he finished exercising two hours later, the bag and the gun were gone.
On June 27, police began investigating another theft in which an unlocked and running vehicle was stolen from a residence. Witnesses saw a man, later identified as Ricky Lee Rawls Jr., 21, enter the vehicle and leave, according to a probable cause affidavit. Witnesses told police the man identified as Rawls was carrying a black sling bag,
Rawls was captured on video surveillance attempting to pawn the stolen gun from the gym case, according to the affidavit; the pawn shop is a short walk from the residence where the vehicle was stolen, a detective noted in the affidavit.
Along with the vehicle, a wallet containing several bank cards was stolen and one was used at a local Publix. The fraudulent bank transaction was also captured on video and Rawls is seen wearing the same shirt he was wearing in the video from the pawn shop. The card was also used in several locations outside the city of Clermont.
In July 2019, a pair of friends went to the same gym where the black bag was stolen from and placed their belongings in the same locker. A black Ford Mustang and a wallet were stolen in that incident. Lake County Sheriff’s Office deputies recovered the Mustang on July 27 near the intersection of U.S. Highway 27 and Lake Louisa Road, but were unable to apprehend the male and female walking away from the scene. Clermont Police obtained a search warrant for the Mustang and fingerprints later identified as Rawls’ were found inside the car.
In August 2019, an Orange County Sheriff’s Office deputy spotted a jeep reported stolen to University of Central Florida Police. The deputy attempted to stop the jeep, but it fled and crashed. The black male driver fled on foot and was not apprehended, according to the affidavit. The OCSO deputy recovered the firearm stolen in June from the gym in Clermont.
After receiving information from the Florida Department of Law Enforcement on the identity of the fingerprints, the Clermont Police detective pulled up Rawls’ driver license photo, and due to Rawl’s “unique” haircut and facial hair, the detective identified Rawls as the suspect in both surveillance videos, along with Rawls matching witness descriptions in the thefts.
The vehicle stolen from the driveway in Clermont in June was later recovered in Orlando by the Florida Highway Patrol. Though Rawls fled after speaking with a trooper, the trooper was able to positively identify him, according to the affidavit.
During the Clermont Police detective’s investigation, he learned Rawls was suspected in thefts in Volusia County, Seminole County, Orange County, Lake County and several city jurisdictions.
A warrant for Rawls’ arrest was issued in October 2019; he was picked up in Orange County and transferred to the Lake County Jail on Monday. Rawls is currently charged with two counts each of grand theft auto and fraudulent use of a credit card and one count each of dealing in stolen property and grand theft of a firearm. He is being held in the Lake County Jail on $36,000 bond.
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Our Editor-in-Chief, Marilyn M. Aciego, began writing for Lake Legal News in 2010. Born and raised in Lake County, she is a graduate of Umatilla High School and Lake-Sumter State College. She started her journalism career at LSSC, where she was editor of both student publications, The Angler and The Odyssey. Her professional career began at the Daily Commercial in 2004 where she covered cops and courts the majority of her time there until she left in 2009. Currently, along with being Editor-in-Chief of Lake Legal News, she is the Florida bureau chief for an international media organization. She has made more than two dozen appearances on live national television, including Nancy Grace and the Greta Van Susteren show, along with her appearance on Evil Twins. Contact her with breaking news, tips, and feedback by sending an e-mail to 352Tips@gmail.com. You can also contact us on our Facebook page — and make sure you “Like” and “Follow us” there. [PHOTO CREDIT: Bonnie Whicher]
