An Ocala man was arrested Tuesday after he allegedly stole tools from a van and tried to sell them.
Charles Frank Kenner, 60, of 5382 SE 34th St., was charged with burglary of an unoccupied conveyance and grand theft of property valued between $300 and $5,000.
A Marion County sheriff’s deputy responded Monday to the Cross Country Motel, 5100 S. Pine Ave., where the victim said sometime between 10 a.m. Sept. 22 and 1:30 p.m. Sept. 23, someone had illegally entered his van and stolen tools.
The victim said he regularly uses the tools and lends them out to the people at the mobile home park where he works. He said after discovered they were missing, he told everyone in the park about the theft and asked them for information or for the tools to be returned. The victim said he didn’t report the incident at first because he hoped someone would return the tools, but he finally decided to notify the agency on Monday, according to the sheriff’s office report.
The victim said he had four different persons of interest in mind, including Kenner, whom he knew only as “Toby” or “Smoot.” He was able to speak to a friend who helped provide Kenner’s actual name. Before contacting the sheriff’s department, the victim spoke with and gained permission to record conversations with two witnesses who confirmed his suspicions that Kenner was involved, the report said.
A deputy spoke with the first witness, who said he was approached Friday evening by Kenner, who was carrying a red and silver toolbox. Kenner was asking if Childers knew anyone who wanted to buy a toolbox and then left a short time later on a bicycle. The witness said he recognized the toolbox as belonging to James because he has used it on many occasions and is confident it belongs to him, according to the sheriff’s office report.
The second witness said she saw Kenner trying to sell tools out of his truck on Saturday and Sunday. She was able to see the tools on the back row of Kenner’s truck cab. The witness said there were some power tools and a wide variety of hand tools. She said when she started asking about the tools, Kenner got into his truck and left the location, the report said.
The victim said he was missing three separate toolboxes. He described the first as red and silver and said it contained his standard-sized tools. He valued this toolbox and its contents at $600. The second was a two-toned black toolbox that contained his metric-sized tools, with a total value of $300. The third was an all-black “Craftsman” toolbox with a 100-piece set. It was valued at $200, bringing the total estimated loss to $1,100, according to the report.
There was no damage to the vehicle the tools were stolen from that indicated a forced entry, but it appears entry was made through the passenger-side sliding door. The victim believes Kenner used a metal coat hanger to unlock the door. A witness told the deputy that Kenner borrowed a metal coat hanger several days before the incident took place, the report said.
Kenner was found Tuesday in the 5300 block of SE 26th Street and taken to the South Multi-District Office to be interviewed. After being read his Mirada warning, he said he would never sell any tools because he uses them, according to the report.
Based on witness statements, he was placed under arrest and taken to the Marion County Jail, where he was released later in the day on his own recognizance. He’ll appear in Marion County Court on Nov. 3.