Man in hot water after being caught with stolen tub

ORANGE PARK – A 53-year-old man was arrested on Dec. 5, less than two weeks after the Clay County Sheriff’s Office said security surveillance showed him and a younger male take a hot tub from Spas Ect. On Nov. 24.
Leonardo Antonio Martinez, of Orange Park, was charged with grand theft after detectives linked the store’s video with traffic light surveillance footage from the Florida Department of Transportation that showed the truck driving to his home with the tub in the bed.
Deputies returned on Dec. 2 and from a neighbor’s yard, they noticed a large object under a tarp in Martinez’s backyard. They returned on Dec. 5 and arrested Martinez and recovered the stolen tub. Owners of Spas Ect. said the tub recovered in the backyard had the same serial number as the tub taken from a trailer behind the business.
Martinez’s bond was set at $25,003.

Loss prevention officer stays busy at JC Penney

ORANGE PARK – One loss prevention officer at JC Penney in the Orange Park Mall helped send several out-of-towners to jail for shoplifting.
It started when Geneva Wilson, 77, of Jacksonville, was charged with grand theft on Dec. 5 after store security saw her stuffing $1,189 of jewelry into her bra. According to the arrest report, Wilson first said she took the jewelry to give to her daughter and granddaughter, but she later admitted she took them because she didn’t get any help from a store associate.
Then on Dec. 9, an officer told CCSO he saw Tardazia Shantrell Seay, 21, and Jaida Patricia Batts, 21, both of Fort Myers, leave the store with unpaid items.
According to the arrest report, deputies stopped the women in the mall parking lot. Seay, who was accused of taking “pink clothing item,” attempted to run away, but she was caught near the Books-A-Million store entrance.
Surveillence video also showed Mast taking earrings. The total value of the items taken was $254,98.
Seay’s bond was set at $12,504, while Batts’ bond was set at $5,004.
An hour later, the same store security officer called deputies after he saw two men walk out with unpaid items.
Mateo Amari Hardison, 18, and Jaida P. Batts, 20, both of Jacksonville, were charged with shoplifting and resisting arrest while in the commission of recovering property. CCSO had to make a traffic stop to caputure both.
Bond was set at $5,004 for both.

Woman behind county’s worst case of animal cruelty gets probation

ORANGE PARK – The woman behind one of the worst cases of animal cruelty pled guilty to five counts of aggravated animal cruelty in exchange for being placed on probation for five years and agreeing not to own any animals or being involved in animal breeding.
According to documents filed at the Clay County Courthouse, Jennifer Michelle Wilkie, was originally charged with 42 other counts of animal cruelty after the Clay County Sheriff’s Office, Fire Rescue and Emergency Management responded to 246 Old Jennings Road where they found 257 animals living in deplorable conditions. Most were crammed in small cages, many covered in their own feces and suffering from skin infections. Investigators also found several skeletons and animal carcuses on the 1.3 acre lot.
Dogs, pigs, chickens, goats, pigeons and rabbits were recovered, and all were sent to a triage that was set up at the Clay County Fairgrounds. Eventually, all of the animals were adopted.