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A 19-year-old Deltona woman and two Sanford teenagers were arrested early Tuesday in relation to a string of car break-ins in a Deltona neighborhood, according to the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office.
Jada McDonald, 19, of Deltona, along with two juveniles, was arrested after a resident alerted deputies just before 2 a.m. Tuesday.
The resident noticed three people wearing hooded sweatshirts standing by a parked car at a nearby home, and heard them manipulating the door handle on the car. The resident also saw the car’s interior light turn on, according to Laura Williams, a Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman.
The trio then fled down Fairgren Avenue. According to Williams, deputies set up a perimeter in the area, and found McDonald, who told them she lived in the neighborhood and was simply going out to get a drink at a convenience store.
“She denied any involvement in the car burglary, and was released while a search continued for the two juvenile suspects, who were spotted but took off running from another deputy,” Williams said in a news release. “Deputies soon tracked all three to McDonald’s home on Gramercy Drive — 10 blocks away from the area of the car breaks.”
The trio were taken into custody.
The deputies’ investigation led them to an abandoned blue Hyundai sedan, stolen from Sanford. The car, which deputies believe was used to help the three commit the break-ins, turned out to be owned by one of the juvenile’s mothers, Williams said.
Deputies also found several pieces of stolen property, along with clothes that matched those worn by the suspects as they fled from law enforcement, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
At least four vehicles were burglarized; however, just one owner wished to press charges, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
The two juveniles were charged with burglary of a conveyance, a felony, and resisting an officer without violence, and were released to the custody of their parents.
McDonald was charged with burglary of a conveyance and contributing to the delinquency/dependency of a minor. She is being held at the Volusia County Branch Jail on $6,500 bail.
— Anthony DeFeo
Editor’s note: The Beacon has a policy of not naming juveniles charged with crimes, unless they are tried as adults or are multiple repeat offenders.
