The Marion County Sheriff’s Office arrested a 48-year-old Silver Springs man after he was accused of breaking into his neighbor’s home and stealing $8,300 worth of items.
On February 13, 2023, an MCSO deputy responded to the 700 block of SE 129th Court in Silver Springs in reference to a home that had been burglarized. Upon arrival, the deputy made contact with the male victim who advised that he had left Florida in late April 2022, and he returned home on February 12, 2023, according to the arrest report.
When the victim returned to his residence, he advised that his front door was no longer locked, and the “doggy door” had been pushed in. He told the deputy that the inside of his home was “ransacked” with items thrown all over, and pry marks were also visible on the door to his shed.
The MCSO report stated that the victim later provided the sheriff’s office with a complete list of the stolen items, which totaled $8,300 in value. Those stolen items included the catalytic converter from his vehicle, several televisions, numerous power tools and hand tools, a refrigerator, seats for his boat, a boat battery, mesh screening for his porch, several canopies, chairs, a 17-foot ladder, painting supplies, and a pressure washer.
On March 11, 2023, the deputy arrested one of the victim’s neighbors on an unrelated warrant. The deputy asked the neighbor if she knew anything about the recent burglary incident at the victim’s home, and she stated that she believes her boyfriend, Brian Nicholas Brockett, is responsible for the burglary, according to the MCSO report.
The girlfriend/witness advised that Brockett had “fixed some of the boat seats and sold them” a few months earlier when he was unable to get a boat, and he had burned the remaining boat seats in a fireplace. She also told the deputy that she had heard that a jack had been left under the victim’s vehicle when the catalytic converter was stolen, and she claimed that Brockett had told her that he “lost her jack” around that same time, according to the MCSO report.
The deputy noted in the report that the witness further advised that Brockett is “always coming home with new items” that she believes were stolen. She told the deputy that she did not question Brockett about the items because she “fears” him.
On Monday, May 8, 2023, an MCSO detective and the deputy responded to the 700 block of SE 129th Court in Silver Springs and made contact with the witness who advised that Brockett had “consistently broke into the neighbor’s house” over the past year, and he had allegedly taken multiple items.
The victim had provided investigators with photographs of some of the items that were stolen from his home, and the deputy showed these photos to the witness. She advised that she had seen some of the victim’s items at her residence, and other items had been sold or given away, according to the MCSO report.
The witness consented to a search of her residence. In the MCSO report, the deputy noted that stolen items matching the pictures provided by the victim were located and recovered during the search.
Brockett was located, detained, and transported to the MCSO forest district office for an interview. After being read his Miranda rights, he denied committing the burglary, and he claimed that he had received the items in question from three different individuals.
The deputy informed Brockett that it seemed “extremely unlikely” that three different people had given him the items that all matched the stolen items. Brockett agreed with the deputy that it seemed unlikely, though he continued to advise that he did not commit the burglary because “he is not a thief,” according to the MCSO report.
Brockett was arrested and transported to Marion County Jail where he is currently being held on $34,000 bond. He is facing felony charges for unarmed burglary of an unoccupied dwelling, unarmed burglary of an unoccupied structure, and grand theft of over $5,000 but less than $10,000.
A court date has been scheduled at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, June 13, according to jail records.