Alleged burglar breaks into Florida jewelry store, realizes there's nothing to steal: WATCH
Alleged burglar leaves jewelry store empty-handed
Just after 11 p.m. on Saturday, a man allegedly rammed his white pickup truck into the glass door of a jewelry store in Lake Mary. He then entered the store and turned the lights on, armed with a sledgehammer and carrying a duffle bag. When he glanced at his surroundings, however, he realized there was nothing to steal and walked out about 10 seconds later empty-handed.
LAKE MARY, Fla. - Just after 11 p.m. on Saturday, a man allegedly rammed his white pickup truck into the glass door of a jewelry store in Lake Mary. He then made his way inside the store and turned the lights on, armed with a sledgehammer and carrying a duffle bag.
When he glanced at his surroundings, however, he realized there was nothing to steal and walked out about 10 seconds later – empty-handed.
All the jewelry was removed from the store shelves and displays, something store staff does every night.
"We don't leave anything outside. Nothing. There's nothing," store owner Rene Barrios told FOX 35. "You can take a candle if you need to light your way out, but other than that, there's nothing left of value."
The whole incident was caught on surveillance video at Casa Leon Jewelers, which was shared with FOX 35. You can view the footage in the video player above.
"When I saw that, my heart stopped," Barrios added when he watched back the security footage on his phone.
The suspect, identified as 27-year-old Lenell Barnes III, was eventually taken into custody after a pursuit from Orlando police later that night. He's facing charges related to the incident, including burglary, possession of burglary tools and grand theft of a motor vehicle with a mask, plus three counts of failure to appear on unrelated driving incidents out of Winter Park, records show.
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Lenell Barnes III was arrested and charged with burglary of an unoccupied structure, possession of burglary tools, grand theft of a motor vehicle and three counts of failure to appear. (Photo: Orange County Jail)
Barnes was identified after Lake Mary police put out an alert on the white GMC Sierra that he left the scene driving in, according to the police report. The truck was spotted in Orange County shortly after, and officers with the Orlando Police Department were able to chase after Barnes and take him into custody.
Officers on the scene found a mask, a pair of gloves, a sledgehammer and a yellow bag. The latter two items were seen on surveillance footage from the alleged attempted jewelry theft.
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He declined to speak with officers after being arrested.
An alleged jewel thief made his way into a store in Lake Mary by crashing his pickup truck into the store, according to police. When he made it inside, however, he realized there was nothing to be stolen and left. (Photo: Ivette Barrios)
On Sunday, the owner of the GMC truck was notified that his vehicle was at an impound lot. A search of the vehicle yielded several pieces of broken glass, some of which had letters of the business name and alarm company on them.
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Barnes remains in custody at the Orange County Jail on $16,000 bond.
The door at the jewelry store has since been replaced, and the business is open for business.