A teenager has been arrested after allegedly stealing a BMW from a 7-Eleven in Leesburg.
Jaylin Barnes, 18, of Leesburg was booked last week at the Lake County Jail on warrants charging him with grand theft and grand theft auto.
He was tracked down after the Aug. 30 snatching of the luxury automobile from the 7-Eleven store on South 14th Street.
The owner told a dispatcher that he had gone into the convenience store and left the car running with the keys in the ignition. He had also left two cell phones and $478 in cash in the car. When he exited the store, he saw his car being driven in an eastward direction. He began to run after the BMW which he saw pull into the Circle K parking lot. He saw the thief get out and look at the BMW. When the owner drew nearer, the thief got back into the car and fled eastbound on West Dixie Avenue.
Police officers followed the BMW to Tavares where other agencies joined in the pursuit. The BMW was driven into a yard on Mulberry Lane where the driver and a female passenger got out and ran from the police.
The woman, 18-year-old Lanaisha Frasier of Leesburg, was apprehended wearing latex gloves. She identified Barnes as the driver. She has also been charged with grand theft auto.
Barnes had been charged with grand theft auto in May, but that charge was dropped by prosecutors.
