A 28-year-old Ocala man was arrested after he stole over $200 worth of items from a home that was under construction.
On Thursday, a Marion County Sheriff’s Office corporal responded to Hickory Course Pass in southeast Ocala in reference to a burglary that had just occurred.
Upon arrival, the corporal made contact with the male reportee who is the superintendent for a residence under construction at the incident location. The corporal noted in the MCSO report that a standard permit box providing construction site notification was visible.
The reportee advised that he had received video surveillance footage from a residence across the street which showed a blue Honda SUV backing into the driveway of the incident location. A man, later identified as Tyler Thomas Friedel, exited the vehicle, crawled under a partially open garage door, and removed several items before leaving the area in the SUV.
After viewing the footage, the reportee advised that he was near the incident location, and he returned to the area in an attempt to locate Friedel’s SUV. He found the vehicle in the 200 block of Hickory Course Radial, and Friedel was sitting in the driver’s seat.
According to the reportee, Friedel admitted to stealing the following items: a five-gallon bucket of paint, several pieces of baseboards and trim, and two white wire closet shelves. The MCSO report indicated that the total value of these items was $240.
Friedel asked if he could return the stolen items, and the reportee advised that “he could not allow that.” The reportee contacted law enforcement and an MCSO lieutenant arrived on scene. The lieutenant detained Friedel in handcuffs and observed the stolen items inside the SUV.
The corporal was shown the surveillance footage. In the MCSO report, the corporal noted that Friedel was observed on the footage crawling inside the garage, removing items, and placing those items inside the SUV before driving away from the construction site.
Friedel was transported to the MCSO south multi-district office for an interview. While speaking with the corporal, Friedel admitted to the theft and stated that he had planned to use the stolen items in his own residence.
Friedel was arrested, transported to Marion County Jail, and he was later released on $10,000 bond. He is facing felony charges for unarmed burglary of an unoccupied structure and grand theft from a posted construction site.
A court date has not been scheduled yet, according to jail records.