A 53-year-old Ocala man was arrested after he used a stolen credit card at a local Walmart and Citgo.
On Monday, February 21, an Ocala Police Department officer spoke over the phone with a male victim who had reported a recent theft.
The victim stated that he arrived at the Planet Fitness located at 2800 SW 24th Avenue at around 10 a.m. on Wednesday, February 16. Inside one of the gym’s lockers, he had placed a drawstring bag that contained his wallet, driver’s license, $145 in cash, a debit card and credit card, sunglasses, and other miscellaneous items.
The victim forgot to bring his lock and left the bag unsecured inside the locker. While he was working out, he received a notification on his cellphone that his credit card was recently used at the Walmart located at 7855 SW State Road 200. The purchase was in the amount of $76.52.
When the victim returned to the locker, he noticed that his belongings were gone. He checked his account statement and noticed another fraudulent $57.74 purchase from the Citgo gas station located at 7045 SW 83rd Place.
The victim was advised by his credit card company that the Walmart purchase occurred at 12:32 p.m. and the Citgo purchase was made at 11:53 a.m.
The OPD officer responded to the Walmart and viewed the security footage from February 16 at around 12:30 p.m. According to the OPD report, a middle-aged man was observed wearing a blue t-shirt with the Nike swoosh logo, gray shorts, and black-and-white shoes.
The man paid for the items with the victim’s credit card. When he left the store, he entered an older model Ford pickup truck with an extended bed and a silver toolbox in the rear. The truck was observed exiting the parking lot as it headed southbound towards State Road 200.
The officer headed to Citgo and viewed the gas station’s security footage. The same man was observed as he pulled up to a gas pump in a Ford F-150 pickup truck that had a silver toolbox in the bed of the truck.
After watching the security footage, the officer drove to the Planet Fitness where the theft had occurred. Membership cards are scanned when someone enters the gym, and a gym employee checked the system to see everyone who had arrived at around 10 a.m.
The officer was shown the gym’s security footage, and the officer spotted a man who was wearing the same clothing as the suspect who had used the stolen credit card at Walmart and Citgo. The man’s membership card was scanned when he entered the gym, and he was identified as Leopoldo Alfonso Stagnaro.
On Tuesday, February 22, Stagnaro was located, arrested, and transported to Marion County Jail. He was later released on $8,000 bond, and he is facing felony charges for fraud/impersonation (using an ID of another person without their consent) and illegal use of a credit card along with misdemeanor charges for second degree petit theft and larceny of a credit card.
A court date has been scheduled on Tuesday, March 29 at 9 a.m., according to jail records.